�First Crop� came to me with a note saying �we�re all local business men who love bluegrass. � Based in Louisville, Kentucky, the Corn Island Band�s music exudes an honest sound that reveals a natural inclination for varied material that they and audiences can enjoy and have fun with. Their repertoire ranges from Bill Monroe (On My Way Back to the Old Home), Jimmie Rodgers (He�s in the Jailhouse Now), and an old-time fiddle tune (Soldier�s Joy), to Jerry Jeff Walker�s �Mr. Bojangles� and Charles Johnston�s �Listen to the Music.� Even a couple originals are included with Dan Scullin�s �Cherokee After Dark,� and John Laswell�s �Pain and Misery.�
Formed in 1999, the band�s name is based on the original settlement at the Ohio River falls established by General George Rogers Clark during the Revolutionary War. Collectively, the members have over 200 years of experience involved with bluegrass music, and they include Joe Brooks (rhythm guitar), John Imes (bass), John Laswell (banjo, guitar), Peyton Ray (rhythm mandolin), and Dan Scullin (lead mandolin). Guests include Glenn Gibson (dobro) and Michael Cleveland (fiddle on 4 tracks), the latter who really helps bring the album home with a big splash.
Released in May, 2004, �First Crop� serves as a solid debut from The Corn Island Band. The band shares the lead singing responsibilities with Joe Brooks and Glenn Gibson being the most illustrious standouts vocally. They should consider getting John Imes to sing a little more. Apparently influenced by the Bluegrass Alliance and Seldom Scene, the Corn Island Band gives us a vivacious album that also shows their eclectic tastes. The result is not high-lonesome bluegrass, nor is it contemporary folk. But the band�s musical mixture feels comfortably just about right for a regional band that clearly understands their strengths, boundaries and elements of both genres.
Joe Ross, Staff Writer, Bluegrass Now Magazine (www.bluegrassnow.com)
The Corn Island Band's strong suit is musicianship. Joe Brooks (rhythm guitar), John Imes (bass), John Laswell (banjo, guitar), Peyton Ray (rhythm mandolin), and Dan Scullin (lead mandolin, guitar) are seasoned pickers, and they're joined by Michael Cleveland (four tracks) and Glenn Gibson (Dobro). The collective clicks into high gear on Scullin's standout instrumental "Cherokee After Dark" and delivers a solid version of Jimmy Gaudreau's "Glide Path."
Elsewhere, the Corn Island Band covers a lot of musical ground: from Bill Monroe, Jimmie Rodgers, and the "Martha White Theme" to grassed-up adaptations of the Doobie Brothers' "Listen To The Music" and U2's "I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For." Laswell's "Pain and Misery," the album's only other original, is well written.
Brooks offers credible lead on "Mr. Bo Jangles"... First Crop adds a hearty harvest of bluegrass to Louisville's music scene. Tim Walsh
Bluegrass Now Vol. 15, No. 11, November 2005