Jenny Whiteley is an award-winning Canadian singer and songwriter. This collection contains three of her original songs, plus another eight which are a mix of three traditional and five by other writers performed primarily in old-time styles. She opens with Chris Coole’s “100 Dollars” which features Sam Allison’s clawhammer banjo, as does “In The Pines.” Allison, who produced, plays too many instruments to list here and also helps on vocals, along with Chris and Ken Whiteley and the Wolfe Island Singers. Teillard Finch also plays a long list of instruments and sings. Whiteley plays guitar.
The first original is the rollicking “Banjo Girl,” which has clawhammer banjo and fiddle. Mike Herron’s “Log Cabin Home In The Sky” is accompanied by banjo and harmonica. “Malade” is another Whiteley original (in French) in a style influenced by jug band music. “Groundhog” is an old-time classic. The Memphis Jug Band’s “Stealin’, Stealin’” by Will Shade is one of the highlights of this recording. The last original, “Higher Learning,” has an early jazz feel. Bob Dylan’s “Oxford Town” is embedded in “Old Mother Flanagan.” Uncle Dave Macon’s “Morning Blues” is performed in a jug band style. “Things Are Coming My Way” is a traditional spiritual. Whiteley has a strong and pleasing voice, and the accompaniment is both imaginative and effective. If you like old-time string band and jug band music, you might want to give this recording a listen.