Biography

Stalwart bluegrass godfather Del McCoury released Family Circle (no, it's not a progressive bluegrass song cycle about the popular American women's magazine of the same name) six months after unleashing a 50-track career retrospective (with newly recorded songs, no less). His first collection of non-gospel material since 2005, Family Circle featured new material penned by the likes of Ronnie Bowman, Jim Lauderdale, Mark Knopfler, Billy Smith, and Shawn Camp played to perfection by Del, sons Rob and Ronnie, fiddler Jason Carter, and bass player Alan Bartram. Like all McCoury releases, Family Circle sounds like the work of a band in its prime (Del was 70 at the time of recording), and while it may follow the bluegrass template to the letter, it's a note worth reading, studying, and ultimately passing along to others.