Peter Rowan - Carter Stanley's Eyes (2018)

The moment Monroe introduced Rowan to fellow icon Carter Stanley is etched in his memory just as indelibly as the inked entry in his 1966 diary. Within a few months, Stanley would be gone, but the impact he and his brother, Ralph, had on Rowan - and the world -would grow even stronger. He acknowledges their influence, and finally gives the story of that meeting a definitive telling, with his debut Rebel Records release, 'Carter Stanley's Eyes'. This album is not a tribute to the Stanley Brothers. "It's an honoring of them, and of my roots," Rowan clarifies. More specifically, it maps the path he followed from their musical roads to his own. Along the way, he visits Monroe ("Can't You Hear Me Calling"), the Louvin Brothers ("A Tiny Broken Heart") and Lead Belly ("Alabama Bound"), whose presence reinforces both his and Monroe's blues influences. Rowan, who produced, gathered several luminaries to join him on the journey: lead guitarist Jack Lawrence, of Doc Watson's band; mandolinist/vocalist Don Rigsby, guitarist/vocalist Tim O'Brien (Bluegrass Dukes, Hot Rize); percussionist Jamie Oldaker (Eric Clapton); and banjoist/guitarist/vocalist Patrick Sauber (seen in the film A Mighty Wind). They're joined by Rowan's Bluegrass Band mates: Blaine Sprouse on fiddle and vocals, Chris Henry on mandolin and vocals and Paul Knight on acoustic bass. Together, they do indeed honor their forbears, staying faithful to tradition. "To me, the importance of the music is in the songs," he says. "It's about the poetic material. Bluegrass is part of a literary tradition, a poetic tradition."