Bluegrass receives a bad, undeserved, reputation and the banjo is often the punchline to jokes. I’m here to turn that reputation around with a song off of Greensky Bluegrass’s most recent album, If Sorrows Swim. ‘Windshield’, the first track on the album, is accessible to those who both appreciate bluegrass, and those that aren’t familiar with the genre. It’s a great gateway drug to the genre. The instrumentation composition isn’t necessarily roots bluegrass, but has all the ingredients of a standard bluegrass song; upright bass, dobro, mandolin, acoustic guitar, and of course, banjo. The song resonates more like a rock or pop song, but rhythmically pulsates as a blue grass band. Lyrically, the song appears to be about lost love, but between parents.
“Someone better hide the children, I think things are getting out of hand?
And there’s nothing for a woman left to take from a man
?And all the stories of our parents are falling apart?
Took a lifetime to protect us keep from breaking our hearts.”
Greensky Bluegrass may be a five piece acoustic band, but that does not limit them in terms of dynamic, energy, and presence. They manage to fill and sell out large venues and accompany their powerful shows with intense light shows.