Druha Trava - Shuttle to Bethlehem
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1. Shuttle to Bethlehem
2. When Horses Fly Away 3. Before We Say Goodbye 4. Infiela 5. Jumpin´ Jack Flash 6. Seňore 7. The Last of the Galleons 8. May Morning Dew (Tribute To Peadar O´Donnell) 9. Ještě není tma 10. Dancer 11. When I Take Off My Shoes Recorded in Nashville and Prague, Shuttle to Bethlehem is Druha Trava's first ever recording whose main focus is definitive English versions of singer-songwriter Robert Krestan´s iconic songs. Ranging from the intensely intimate to the anthemic, they evoke love and longing, death and desire as they tell strange tales and recount # haunting new legends. The translations are fruit of a collaboration between Krestan and the award-winning American writer Ruth Ellen Gruber. Shuttle to Bethlehem includes seven of Druha Trava´s best-known tracks. Added to them are new Czech versions of two of the Bob Dylan songs on DT´s 2007 Dylanovky CD, as well as a bluegrassy take on the Rolling Stones´ "Jumpin´ Jack Flash" and a Celtic-inspired instrumental, "May Morning Dew/Tribute to Peadar O´Donnell," featuring Lubos Malina on low whistle. ROBERT KRESTAN: Singer, songwriter, mandolin LUBOS MALINA: Banjo, whistles LUBOS NOVOTY: Dobro, pedal steel guitar EMIL FORMANEK: Acoustic and electric guitar TOMAS LISKA: Bass Guests: DAVID LANDSTOF: drums, percussion TODD LOMBARDO: mandolin (Jumpin´ Jack Flash) PEPA MALINA: fiddle KAMIL SLEZAK: cajon, percussion (May Morning Dew/Tribute to Peadar O´Donnell) ABOUT THE BAND Famed on both sides of the Atlantic for its "Czechgrass" fusion of coustic, bluegrass, folk and rock, Druha Trava is the foremost band to emerge from the flourishing Czech bluegrass scene. Its virtuoso musicians can satisfy the most hardcore fans with scorching versions of traditional bluegrass standards. But as the band´s name "Second Grass" implies, DT reaches far beyond the classic bluegrass genre for inspiration. The band uses American roots music as a starting point for a synthesis of jazz, pop, folk and even classical motifs, transforming an iconic American idiom into a richly textured, highly personal statement. DT was formed in 1991 by the influential singer-songwriter Robert Krestan, multi-instrumentalist Lubos Malina and other veterans of the acoustic music scene that had long thrived in Czechoslovakia. Krestan´s original songs -- renowned for their enigmatic, at times provocative, lyrics -- make up most of the band´s repertoire, and they and Krestan´s raw, gritty vocals set the band apart. But DT also performs bluegrass standards and covers -- in English and Czech -- of material by songwriters ranging from Mick Jagger to American acoustic veteran Peter Rowan (with whom the group collaborated on a CD, New Freedom Bell, in 1999). The group´s 2007 album, Dylanovky, featured Krestan´s Czech versions of Bob Dylan songs. Druha Trava and is members have produced more than a score of CDs and have won numerous Czech music awards. The band enjoys a wide following in the Czech Republic as well as a loyal fan base in North America, where DT tours for at least one month each year. Robert Krestan: Singer, songwriter, mandolin Lubos Malina: Banjo, whistles Lubos Novoty: Dobro, pedal steel guitar Emil Formanek: Acoustic and electric guitar Tomas Liska: Bass |
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