MUSIC REVIEWS
ALISON KRAUS AND UNION STATION
LONELY RUNS BOTH WAYS

Alison Krauss and Union Station released a new CD, Lonely Runs Both Ways, on November 23, 2004. The CD is a good follow up to the band's Grammy-winning, platinum album, Live! (2002) and New Favorite (2001). Country/Bluegrass fiddler and vocalist Alison Krauss has won 17 Grammies and the band, Union Station, is recognized as one of the major Bluegrass bands in America.

The CD Lonely Runs Both Ways follows the typical style of a release by the group. While Alison Krauss is definitely the front 'person' for the band, Union Station's vocalists Dan Tyminski and Barry Bales take the lead in several songs, and the selection of songs for Union Station seems much better on this CD than some of their previous releases.

Two songs sung by Krauss, "Gravity" and "Restless" open the CD. In these songs, written by Robert Lee Castleman who wrote other Krauss hits including "The Lucky One," "Let Me Touch You For A While," and "Forget About It," Krauss plays the viola to accent her voice on the soft melodies of the songs. The instrumentation on the CD is great and exemplified by the mandolin taunt at the start of "Restless." Other songs sung by Krauss include "Borderline," "My Poor Old Heart," and another great Castleman song, "It Doesn't Have To Be This Way."

Union Station cuts on Lonely Runs Both Ways include Del McCoury's "Rain Please Go Away," a heart wrenching rendition of Woody Guthrie's "Pastures Of Plenty," and a great jam, led by dobro player Jerry Douglas called "Unionhouse Branch."

On the CD Alison Krauss plays fiddle and viola, Dan Tyminski plays guitar and mandolin, Jerry Douglas plays the dobro, Ron Block works the banjo, and Barry Bales is featured on the bass.

2004 also saw the release of U2's CD How To Dismantle An Atomic Bomb, a CD that many people believe to be the last U2 CD. The CD is in part salvaged from 2003 sessions that the band deemed subpar and was possibly 'mixed in the mix' by Steve Lillywhite, the band's original producer and sometime collaborator. It was Lillywhite that helped retool the track "Native Son" into the aggressive "Vertigo" and left his distinctive stamp on "All Because Of You." "Vertigo" and "All Because Of You" are the two major hits on this compilation whose evolution from tapes on the cutting room floor to farewell album almost resembles the Beatles final offering, Let It Be. Let It Be was made possible by the legendary producer of the Beatles, Phil Spector's additions and alterations.

However, for the U2 purist who longs for the days of the Joshua Tree, there are some songs reminiscent of that era. "Miracle Drug," "City Of Blinding Lights," and "A Man and a Woman" are great songs and due a mention here. However, for the most part, this CD is probably more fit for individual iPod downloads than a real theme compilation of music. Music packaging and marketing have sure changed since Let It Be!

U2 formed in their native Dublin in 1978 and its four original band members Bono, Larry Mullen, Adam Clayton and The Edge all participated in How To Dismantle An Atomic Bomb. They will all continue with their solo works, but they have left us with some great music including the Joshua Tree, War, Achtung Baby, and Rattle and Hum. They currently have two best of CDs out, Best of 1980-1990, and Best of 1990-2000.

Did you forget about this one? Remember the Jeff Healey band and their 1988 CD See The Light? See The Light included several great songs including "Confidence Man," "Blue Jean Blues," and the hits "See the Light" and "Angel Eyes." The Jeff Healey Band was led by Jeff Healey, a blind singer/guitar player that played his guitar across his lap dobro style. Healey and his band were featured in the movie Road House starring Patrick Swayze, Kelly Lynch, and Ben Gazzara. The Jeff Healey Band has a hits CD out in the Platinum & Gold collection that includes "I Think I Love You Too Much," "Confidence Man," "Angel Eyes," "Highway 49," "Angel," and their cover of the George Harrison classic "While My Guitar Gently Weeps."