The Hazel and Alice Sessions

Bluegrass veteran Laurie Lewis does her mentors proud with this 14-track tribute to the undisputed female heavyweight champions of the category: Hazel Dickens and Alice Gerrard. With regular Right Hands members Tom Rozum (mandolin and harmony vocals), Patrick Sauber (banjo) and Andrew Conklin (bass) carrying the majority of the supporting load, this features special guest appearances by Aoife O’Donovan and Linda Ronstadt, who take showcase spots on two separate a capella duets with Lewis, ‘James Alley Blues’ and ‘Pretty Bird,’ respectively.

Hazel Dickens passed away in 2011, but Gerrard remains an active performer. Her vocal-harmony contribution lends a sense of earnest gravity to Lewis’ version of Dickens’ powerful feminist/proletariat anthem, ‘Working Girl Blues’, which also features a never-before-recorded third verse. Additional accompaniment by Tatiana Hargreaves (fiddle), Chad Manning (fiddle), Mike Wilcher (dobro) and Harley Eblen (bass vocals) round out this brilliantly executed recording.