A Boy Named Blue The Bluegrass Tribute to The Goo Goo Dolls

NewsJune 25, 2009Unknown source

A Boy Named Blue The Bluegrass Tribute to The Goo Goo Dolls

BMNN wrote: on Jun. 25, 2009:

Los Angeles, CA -- CMH Records' A Boy Named Blue: The Bluegrass Tribute to the Goo Goo Dolls continues the label's successful tribute series. They've already taken fist-pumping anthems from hard rockers like Van Halen, Metallica, and Green Day successfully down the rolling, dusty bluegrass road, and now CMH Records is getting ready to top that success with the July 28 release of A Boy Named Blue: The Bluegrass Tribute to the Goo Goo Dolls. With percussion and liner notes by none other than Goo Goo Dolls drummer Mike Malinin, this collection is the definitive album for fans of the Buffalo-based rockers and for anyone who loves great bluegrass music.


Maybe it's Goo Goo Dolls lead singer/songwriter John Rzeznik's Buffalo-bred, blue collar songwriting sensibility, but all of these songs – from worldwide smash hits like "Iris," "Name," "Slide," "Here is Gone," "Black Balloon" and "Broadway" to fan favorites like "Acoustic #3" and "Without You Here" – sound as if they were written expressly for the bluegrass genre. A lot of the credit for that seamless metamorphosis goes to Iron Horse, the five-man, Muscle Shoals, Alabama-based bluegrass outfit that reinterpreted these rock radio classics.

But the genesis for A Boy Named Blue came from Malinin himself, who has long counted the 1962 release, Flatt & Scruggs at Carnegie Hall, among his all-time favorite records. Up until recently, it was the only bluegrass record in his collection. After becoming a fan of Pickin' On Modest Mouse, another CMH release, the drummer contacted the label, and one thing led to another. Hearing Iron Horse's freewheeling take on the Goo Goo Dolls' songs sealed the deal for Malinin.

"I was really excited when I heard these recordings," says Malinin, who wound up contributing percussion to some of the tracks. "It was almost scary how well John's songs hold up in a completely different genre. The point is that great music transcends genre. It's great to be in a band that got'picked on.' I couldn't be happier."

[source]http://www.cybergrass.com/modules.php?name=News&file=article&sid=6466[/source]

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