★★★★★
When it comes to playing mandolin, Nashville-ians know there are few better than Sam Bush; he can certainly play circles around most. However, great instrumentalists don't always make the best solo artists, which is sadly obvious at times with Circles around Me. At the point Del McCoury joins in to sing on "Roll on Buddy, Roll On", it's a welcome occasion because McCoury is a distinctive singer, whereas Bush is merely a passable one. McCoury also lends his lungs to "Midnight on the Stormy Deep"...
- roughstock.com
2010-12-07
★★★★★
At 57, Sam Bush is only getting better with age. With Circles Around Me, he combines old and new sounds in an irresistible blend that ranks among some of his best solo work to date. Though he's sharply dressed in a suit on the album cover (a far cry from earlier album covers like Glamour & Grits on which he sports an outfit befitting a colorblind transient-albeit one who owned a prewar Gibson F-5)-several songs recall his scruffy days as a member of the boundary-pushing New Grass Revival...
- www.the9513.com
2010-12-07
★★★★★
Founder of '70s forward thinking roots renegades New Grass Revival, chameleon like Sam Bush may be renowned as an all around roots ringer: whether leading EmmyLou Harris' Nash Ramblers, or trading mandolin licks as a Flecktone, he's the kind of musician whose mere presence raises everyone's game. But Bush is very much his own man, and Laps In Seven is further testament to his singular progressive vision...
- www.hour.ca
2010-11-23
★★★★★
Sam Bush is a country and bluegrass legend. For over four decades, Bush and his mandolin and fiddle have redefined bluegrass by adding rock, jazz, and even a hint of reggae to the rigid confines of the bluegrass genre. On his latest album, Circles Around Me, Bush further entrenches himself as one of the greatest bluegrass singers and songwriters of all-time...
- www.ink19.com
2010-01-07
★★★★★
Laps in Seven proceeds from Bush's realization that his dog Ozzie drinks water in syncopated 7/4 time, a quirky insight indicating that this is no run-of-the-mill bluegrass traditionalist at work...
- www.globalrhythm.com
2009-06-12
★★★★★
On one of his most
satisfying solo albums, newgrass mandolin virtuoso Bush makes up
for his monochromatic vocal stylings with the same zeal he
applies to his instrumental work (an energetic stew of jazz,
'grass, rock, reggae, gospel, and blues). Having pals John
Cowan, Bela Fleck, and Emmylou Harris on board for Howlin' at the Moon doesn't hurt
either. B+
- ew.com
2009-06-12
★★★★★
Sam Bush has been one of the most respected and loved bluegrass icons since his work with the New Grass Revival during the early '70s. Few folk today remember what a stir the New Grass Revival made at the time with their long hair and acoustic rock take on "Great Balls of Fire." On 2006's Laps in Seven, singer/mandolinist Bush covers the bluegrass continuum with ease, offering fairly traditional fare like "Bringing in the Georgia Mail" and progressive jazz like Jean-Luc Ponty's "New Country...
- music.aol.com
2008-08-28
★★★★★
One of the first things one notices when popping this Acoustic Disc album into the CD changer is the clean, natural production. A mandolin on the right track, another on the left, and a guitar in the center, all lovingly mixed for clarity and a solid acoustic sound. This same careful approach is obvious from the opening notes of the first piece, "Hartford's Real," on Hold On, We're Strummin'...
- music.aol.com
2008-08-28
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