Music

They Called It Music

Just months after winning the 2012 International Bluegrass Music Association’s Entertainer of the Year award -- the most prestigious honor in bluegrass -- the Gibson Brothers have released their new album They Called It Music. On this release, Eric and Leigh Gibson dig deeper into duet harmony than they ever have before. Longtime bandmates Mike Barber (bass), Clayton Campbell (fiddle) and Joe Walsh (mandolin) join in on a set of songs that feature some of the brothers' best originals yet, coupled with a varied collection of creative covers of songs by Loretta Lynn, the Delmore Brothers, Joe Newberry and Shawn Camp. According to Eric and Leigh, the original songs on the new album – inspired largely by the loss of their father last year - come from a more emotional place than on previous albums. Eric explains: "Although this isn't a grieving album some of that energy found its way into the music." But it was a comment that bluegrass icon Tim O'Brien made after listening to their previous album, Help My Brother, that proved to be the emotional rudder for the new project. "Tim told us to dig deeper on this album. We thought about that comment a lot and I think we've accomplished that with the new CD,” comments Eric. Lyrics in Liner Notes. Order Now

Lonesome Road Review: 5 out of 5 Stars

They Called It Music is pretty darned fabulous. One cannot accuse the Gibsons of resting on their laurels; they continue to push themselves toward producing stronger, more varied music, recording songs that they have spent time uncovering, as well as more than a few they’ve written themselves. The gentler, songwriter-type songs are adroitly mixed with catchier radio numbers, a pair of which—”Buy A Ring, Find a Preacher” and the title track—are frontloaded.

No two songs can be confused, and the album’s closing number, an Eric Gibson composition entitled “Songbird’s Song” is incomparable; transcending bluegrass while strengthening its definition, this one may prove timeless. There is no mistaking the vocal intensity of the Gibson Brothers, and on They Called It Music the emphasis on harmony is as palatable as ever. Leigh Gibson, the younger brother, has a smooth, pleasing voice while the Eric’s is higher, more piercing and Del-like: lovely, that.

No matter which is singing, it sounds real good. Leigh’s finest of many lead turns may be on a terrific new song from Joe Newberry, “The Darker the Night, the Better I See;” this barstool anthem is pitiful and blue—absolutely beautiful. I was gobsmacked from the moment he sang, “I’ve honky tonked most all my life, my day begins at the edge of night.” Read the full review

Prescription Bluegrass Reviews "Music"

Original songs, to me, are the life blood of any band, but when someone takes the time to diligently search for just the right songs that will fit in and mesh with their own sound , that, too, is a very rare form of talent called perseverance. Eric and Leigh found six absolute gems that they have turned into “Gibson Family” property. Sometimes there is a big gap between how good the original and non-original songs are, but that’s not the case here. From start to finish, this CD is a poignant, powerful and cohesive work of art that flows beautifully from one song to the next. Read full review by W.J. Hallock

Bluegrass Today Reviews They Called It Music

Late last year, as I chatted with Eric Gibson, I silently doubted him when he said he thought the Gibson Brothers next CD would be their best yet. After Ring the Bell a few years back and album of the year honors and other awards for Help My Brother over the last two years, delivering something even better seemed a tall, if not impossible, order. I should have listened to him. They Called It Music, the Gibson Brothers’ new release on Compass Records, is better than anything the upstate New Yorkers have delivered so far, and that’s saying something. Read the full review by David Morris

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Bluegrass music has a long, rich history of brother duos. Eric and Leigh Gibson may be one of the newer links in that chain, but their harmonies are some of the best you’ll find in bluegrass–or any genre. Out March 26 on Compass Records, The Gibson Brothers’ They Called It Music will be a serious contender for Album of the Year thanks to those captivating harmonies and the five-man band’s stellar arrangements. Covers of songs by artists like Mark Knopfler, the Delmore Brothers, and Shawn Camp and Loretta Lynn stand alongside original material that includes some of the brothers’ best writing to date.
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Help My Brother 2011 IBMA Album of the Year; 2011 PopMatters Album of the Year;
2012 SPGMA Album of the Year; 2012 SPGMA Song of the Year

Help My Brother Walkin' West to Memphis Dixie Frozen in Time He Can Be Found Singing As We Rise Want vs Need I'll Love Nobody But You Just Lovin' You Talk to Me One Car Funeral Safe Passage

Produced by Eric Gibson, Mike Barber and Leigh Gibson
Listen and Buy It Now        Lyrics in Liner Notes

"Eric and Leigh Gibson might have, pound-for-pound, the most impeccably fine-sounding traditional bluegrass band on the contemporary scene: On their 10th album, the Brothers have recorded another sterling run of bluegrass songs, imbued with a new found penchant for deeply felt lyrical wisdom, while paying tribute to both their own family lineage and reflecting on the philosophical preoccupations of the modern man. This combination of traditional sounds and contextual depth is part of what makes Help My Brother so good, and it’s a formula that finds the Gibsons continuing to trump themselves time and again. But the rest of the reason these guys can’t lose is that, quite simply, they sound so great. Eric and Leigh sing bluegrass’ tightest harmony blend, and, instrumentally—Eric on banjo, Leigh on guitar, the terrific Clayton Campbell on fiddle, Joe Walsh (no, not that one) on mandolin, and Mike Barber (who co-produced with the Brothers) on bass—the group plays with unmatched alacrity and taste. For this record, a mix of new originals and obscure covers, the boys bring in top-notch support from Ricky Skaggs, Claire Lynch, and Alison Brown, and their new songs are among their strongest yet, including Leigh’s rousing “Help My Brother”, the contemplative “Want vs. Need” (co-written with Tim O’Brien), and “Dixie”, the prettiest song ever written about Elvis’s first high school sweetheart. All told, Help My Brother did more things more impressively than any other bluegrass record of the year, and, as the Gibson Brothers go, that’s something we’ve learned to expect."                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                  Steve Leftridge, PopMatters.com

From the outset, the Gibson Brothers have made a dramatic mark not only with their heartfelt sibling harmonies, but also with their exquisitely crafted, evocative original songs. Now that this New York-born & raised, 2010 IBMA award-winning duo has ten albums, a few more gray hairs, and countless touring miles behind them, both their singing and songwriting have accrued even more subtle nuances of world-weariness, spirituality, and nostalgia, along with the melancholy that so often comes with the universal search to find one’s place in the greater scheme of things. You can hear this with disarming clarity in Eric’s haunting ballad, “Frozen In Time” and Leigh’s deeply felt “Safe Passage.” Read the full review                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                              Bluegrass Unlimited

Ring the Bell 2010 IBMA Song of the Year; 2010 IBMA Recorded Gospel Performance

I Know Whose Tears I Can't Like Myself The Wishing Well Ring the Bell Angel Dream What Can I Do? Jericho Farm of Yesterday Just An Old Rounder Forever Has No End That's What I Get For Loving You Bottomland

Produced by The Gibson Brothers and Mike Barber
Listen and Buy It Now          Lyrics in Liner Notes

“Brothers Eric and Leigh Gibson continue to ring the bell for the classic sound of brother duets with their first album for Compass Records. This time around, they bring with them a slightly more raw sound to their tight harmonies… With a renewed interest in the sound of brother duets, the Gibson Brothers should not be overlooked. Their authentic sound is a breath of fresh air in the marketplace.” Read the full review            Bluegrass Unlimited


You like brother harmonies? Here's your ticket. Self-described "bluegrass lifers" Leigh and Eric Gibson sing so well together, write good tunes, and employ a pack of good backing pickers."                                                                                                                                                                                          Tad Dickens, The Roanoke Times

Iron and Diamonds 2009 IBMA Song of the Year Nominee -- Iron and Diamonds

Cabin Down Below Iron and Diamonds One Step Closer to the Grave The Other Side of Town
Somewhere Trouble Don't Go Lonely Me, Lonely You Picker's Blues A World So Full of Love
Angry Man Bloom Off the Rose Long Way Down Gone Home

Produced by Eric Gibson, Mike Barber and Leigh Gibson   Sugar Hill Records
Listen and Buy It Now     Lyrics in Liner Notes

                                                                        "Beautiful. Timeless. Wrenching."     -- Bill Eichenberger, Columbus Dispatch

“The Gibson Brothers lead a bluegrass quintet that can pull off traditional Bill Monroe-style picking and sweet, Louvin Brothers-like harmony singing.”
                                                                                                                                                                                              -- Geoffrey Himes, The Washington Post

Red Letter Day

Lonesome Number One Walking with Joanna One Raindrop Red Letter Day The Barn Song
I Got A Woman We Won't Dance Again Sam Smith What A Ways We've Come As Long As There's You The Prisoner's Song If I Were You One More Try Twenty One Years It's All Over Now

Produced by Eric Gibson, Leigh Gibson, Mike Barber   Sugar Hill Records
Listen and Buy It Now       Lyrics in Liner Notes

"There's a certain timelessness to their sound; even their rock 'n' roll covers (Bobby Womack's "It's All Over Now", Ray Charles's "I Got a Woman") have a kind of fresh-faced enthusiasm, as do their judicious selection of other writers such as Kieran Kane. In this heady mix, their own songs don't sound out of place, which is a tribute in itself."             Joe Breen, Irish Times

Long Way Back Home

Mountain Song Callie's Reel Dreams That End Like This The Way I Feel Ophelia Any Man In His Right Mind Long Way Back Home It's All Right With Me Alone With You I'm Not Wanted Here I Gotta Get Back to You Satan's Jeweled Crown He'd Take Her Back Again

Produced by The Gibson Brothers   Sugar Hill Records
Listen and Buy It Now       Lyrics in Liner Notes

"Easily their most accomplished outing, Long Way Back Home is the kind of bluegrass record that doesn't get made anymore, with amazing heartfelt singing, popping instrumental breaks, and a freshness that could never exist in a museum of dead legacies."                                                                                                                                                                                                                                   Thom Jurek, All Music Guide

Bona Fide

The Open Road Arleigh Ragged Man Railroad Line That Bluegrass Music Verne's Guitar Where Nobody Knows My Name Shucking the Corn Don't Forget the Coffee, Billy Joe Whisper in My Ear Norma Beautiful Brown Eyes The Lighthouse

Produced by The Gibson Brothers   Sugar Hill Records
Listen and Buy It Now    Lyrics in Liner Notes

"Eric and Leigh Gibson's fifth album is marked by solid picking, strikingly tight harmonies and -- best of all -- smart new material that sticks close to the songwriting conventions of bluegrass and old-time music."               Greg Crawford, Detroit Free Press
With Bona Fide, the Gibson Brothers have brought out their strongest recording to date. These two brothers and their band combine a collection of superbly written original tunes with a few familiar songs we've heard before to bring out what could be this year's bluegrass album of the year."                                                                                                                                                                                                                                   Allen Price, Folk & Acoustic Music Exchange

These talented brothers bring to music a rustic-yet-modern approach that is so beautifully country, so pure and unadulterated, so truly REAL, it's hard to believe it's an old-timey form of music. Especially since it sounds so perfectly contemporary.
                                                                                                                                                                                                  Kathy Coleman, About.com

Another Night of Waiting

Breakthrough Another Night of Waiting Wanting, Wanting You She Paints a Picture City Water The Next One Is Me I Don't Care Anymore Travelin' Blues My Yesterdays Look Better Every Day We'll Stay Here Loose Talk Last Letter Home One More Time I Must Rise

Produced by Alan O'Bryant    Hay Holler Records
Listen and Buy It Now      Lyrics in Liner Notes

"My God, this is a sublime piece of work. The boys sing with such fire, passion, and intensity that every cut is truly a treat."
                                           Dave Higgs, WPLN, Brentwood, TN

"Dead-on, hard-edged harmony singing, like God and Bill intended bluegrass music to be sung. I find that refreshing, maybe even exhilarating. Crank this puppy up and feel the little hairs stand up on the back of your neck. This is music that CUTS."                                                                                                                                                                                                     Lee Taylor, The SEBA Breakdown

Spread Your Wings

Picture in the Moonlight Sam Smith Two Hours Down Kentucky Gambler Wondering
I'm Gonna Love You (Like There's No Tomorrow) Ten Miles From the Truth Early
Sins of Your Past The Moon Still Shines (on my Moonshine Still) Songbird I Can't Quit
When God Comes Down and Gathers His Jewels Darling Corey

Produced by Tim Austin Hay Holler Records
Listen and Buy It Now

Long Forgotten Dream

Long Forgotten Dream Talk Is Cheap Hesseltine Hill Childish Love Looking for a Smile in a Heartache Are You Teasing Me? Engineer Without a Train Good as Gold Where Does the Good Times Go? Before You Met Her I Don't Know What to Do Lifeboat Little Man in the Mirror You Won't Be Satisfied That Way God Bless Her 'Cause She Is My Mother

Produced by The Gibson Brothers Hay Holler Records
Listen and Buy It Now

Underneath a Harvest Moon

Old Memory Underneath a Harvest Moon You're Running Wild I Can't Like Myself Your Man in the Middle Just Friends Hand Me Down My Walking Cane Tears of Yesterday Satan's Jeweled Crown
I Never Was Too Much I'll Break Out Again Tonight Forty Years Girl of My Dreams
The Newness Has Survived How Mountain Girls Can Love

The Gibson Brothers Bluegrass Band
Produced by The Gibson Brothers and Chas. Eller Big Elm Records (out of print)