Red Smiley & The Bluegrass Cut-Ups – 20 OLD-TIME FAVORITES
Produced by Lee Sutton (the same visionary who captured the music of the legendary J.E. Mainer), this album captured some of the consistenly high quality work of Red Smiley and his band.
Prior to fronting the Bluegrass Cut-Ups, Red Smiley was with Don Reno, one of the of the pioneering first-generation bluegrass bands, very popular and influential throughout the 50s and 60s, but never as commercially successful as Flatt and Scruggs or Bill Monroe. Red Smiley brought his new group, the Bluegrass Cutups, to Rural Rhythm, with Tater Tate in Reno’s place. Tater had already worked a spell with Bill Monroe before joining Red in 1965. Fans of traditional bluegrass could hardly go wrong with Red Smiley and the Bluegrass Cutups’ original clear and sparkling albums (RR-160, 182, 211) that included hymns, instrumentals, novelty, bluegrass and even a few old pop songs, all handled with grace. Although not in stereo when originally released, RR-211 was showcased as “a model for all small-label productions.”
“20 Old-Time Favorites” is a great introduction to his band’s music that was very well received (and quite eclectic) for the time. Smiley died on Jan. 2, 1972.
