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This 18-track sampler of Jimmy Martin’s classic Decca recordings is a bit skimpy, considering it covers his post-Bluegrass Boys creative peak years from 1956 to 70, but knowing how little is currently available of the scrappy bluegrass kingpin’s exceptional work, it’s reason to celebrate. The well-selected set not only shows Martin to be a fine composer (Hit Parade Of Love, Hold Watcha Got, This World Is Not My Home) but also one of the genre’s most soulful voices. It shouldn’t take more than the chilling Steal Away Somewhere And Die to convince you that it was Martin who really put the blues in bluegrass.
