Bobby Osborne - Try a Little Kindness - [CD]

Though much of the uptempo interplay on the latest from veteran Bobby Osborne (once half of the venerable Osborne Brothers) reinforces the impression of bluegrass as good-time music, tales of hard times dominate the material. The album-opening "The Hard Times" describes a life of never making enough or having enough, with heaven the only hope for escape. From the lovelorn "It's Gonna Be Rainin' 'Til I Die" to the wayward son's lament of "The Fields Have Turned Brown" to a bluegrass recasting of Kris Kristofferson's hangover lament, "Sunday Morning Coming Down," the lyrical mood is as downcast as the music is buoyant. Other than the comparatively bright title track (a hit for Glen Campbell), the the most chipper song here prophesizes the end of the world in "We're Living in the Last Days Now." Osborne's keening tenor, nimble mandolin playing, and ace Rocky Top X-Press band are all in fine form, and the material covered extends from Josh Turner ("Long Black Train") to Paul Simon ("Father and Daughter"), but this album is far from the sunshine special of the year. --Don McLeese