A return to roots reset can be invigorating, especially when you’re America’s preeminent jam-grass band that’s been out there for 33 years. Leftover Salmon’s Drew Emmitt shared recently in an interview that original material wasn’t being written fast enough to hit the studio. So, bassist and producer Greg Garrison suggested an album of covers, the kind bluegrass upstarts Leftover String Band and Salmonheads played in their early days at the Telluride festival campground before those bands merged and became Leftover Salmon.
Also factoring into this was keyboardist Erik Deutsch’s departure in 2020, which netted the newest member, Jay Starling, son of John Starling of the influential, progressive band Seldom Scene. Jay Starling plays Wurlitzer, piano, dobro, and lap steel, besides singing and sharpening the group’s bluegrass perspective.
In the first few tracks, Leftover Salmon plays it pretty straight-up traditionally with selections from Appalachian banjoist Dock Boggs (“Country Blues”) and Delmore Brothers (“Blue Railroad Train”) that features guest guitarist and vocalist Billy Strings hammering it down hard. With the group’s tight harmonies and flawless flat-picking where one solo flows seamlessly into the next, Leftover Salmon could easily fit in with bluegrass’ first generation of stalwarts.
Yet, even on an album of covers, Leftover Salmon will be Leftover Salmon, meaning contemporary influences will soon creep in. In that regard are splendid interpretations of Bob Dylan’s enigmatic “Simple Twist of Fate,” sung confidently by guitarist Vince Herman, and Dallas Frazier’s hardscrabble “California Cottonfields,” sung by Starling. The proceedings reach their envelope-pushing zenith with Link Wray’s jammy “Fire and Brimstone,” which sizzles with Starling’s dobro, and Grateful Dead’s “Black Peter,” which flies with Andy Thorn’s hyperactive banjo playing and glides with Starling’s dreamy, airborne steel rides.
Of the remaining selections, “The New Lee Highway Blues” salutes 77-year-old David Bromberg, who is retiring this year. A second Dylan song makes its presence with “Nashville Skyline Rag,” another showcase of championship caliber picking, assisted again by the mega-popular Strings, who’s always up for another good jam. Based on this collection of smart selections, Leftover Salmon can make another album of non-original material anytime it deems necessary—they never disappoint.
