The Cave—If you're lucky enough to squeeze underground and into The Cave tonight, you'll witness perhaps the state's most beloved and long-lasting musical institution as it continues to chart an unlikely chapter in our collective history. Young string band veterans Tommy Thompson, Jim Watson and Bill Hicks inaugurated their run as Red Clay Ramblers in 1972, adding Mike Craver a year later. The intervening 35 years have brought multiple lineup changes, multimedia experiments, solo albums, duo albums, three international tours sponsored by the State Department, several off-Broadway hits, the revival of one such hit for a new generation, performances at the 1st and 25th Eno festivals, two Carter family funerals, and the death of co-founder Thompson in 2003. Watson, Hicks and Craver roll on several times a year, their preservation of old-time tunes and their own material assisted now by Joe Newberry. —Grayson Currin

Hard Times and Chuckin' the Frizz CDs are here!

Rounder re-issued the Red Clay Ramblers HARD TIMES and CHUCKIN' THE FRIZZ albums as limited edition CDs as part of their Rounder Archive series this summer. 

CHUCKIN' THE FRIZZ, recorded live at the Cat's Cradle in 1979, is considered by many to be the original line-up's finest release.  We have a special page for the honors, accolades, reviews and souvenirs for Frizz.  Read it and get excited with us!

"Red Clay Ramblers, Chuckin' the Frizz -- Any true Ramblers fan knows that this all-too-rare release marks the band's finest hour on record, a well-produced live recording of the rollicking 1979 lineup performing at the old, tinier Cat's Cradle. This is a superior string band at the height of its powers, spinning out traditionals and originals with inspired, infectious fervor." [more]

...Durham Independent 2003

"This is a superbly produced set with a superior recorded sound, fully capturing the rich overtones in the blend of stringed instruments and piano. Craver has never sounded better, and neither has Tommy Thompson, whose voice and banjo playing are adept and gorgeous. His ballad "Hot Buttered Rum" is wonderful, and this moving performance is one of the Red Clay Ramblers' best recorded moments." [more]

...Eugene Chadbourne, All Music Guide.

Joe Newberryand his Two Hands make all the music on his new solo CD, recorded in a day and a half and with live takes (no overdubbing or effects), just like they used to do it.  We especially liked his original songs (highlighted by "I Know Whose Tears") and the Christmas Trilogy finale ("Christmas Eve, "On This Christmas Day," and "Breaking Up Christmas."  Click on the cover to be swept over to Joe's website to get your own copy straight from the source.

Dirty Linen, August/September 2005 reviewed by Duck Baker, London, England
One of the best of the many tributes to the Carters that have appeared over the years was recorded in l980 by three members of that unique and wonderful outfit known as the Red Clay Ramblers. It's interesting neither Jim Watson, Tommy Thompson, nor Mike Craver play very much on mandolin, banjo, or piano here, though Thompson does pick up the five-string at times. The main instrument is the guitar, which both Watson and Craver handle nicely in the appropriate Carter style. The main focus is on the vocals, and they are just gorgeous. The leads are heartfelt, the harmonies just right, and the blend reflects all the years these guys had worked together. A variety of approaches is used, and all reflect a deep understanding of and feeling for the music.

Can 25 years really have passed since this record was made? Has Tommy Thompson really, truly gone on, perhaps to sing his parts with Sara, Maybelle and A.P.? Well, we have to believe it, apparently, which makes the reissue of Meeting in the Air that much more welcome. When it first appeared, everyone agreed that this was a great record. Now it seems something more that that, a classic.