Bluegrass Now Magazine–
Peter Rowan & Tony Rice, Quartet
11661-0579-2A, Rounder Records, rounder.com, Playing time: 52:12  

Quartet  is a stellar effort by two of acoustic music’s legendary forces in bluegrass, newgrass and beyond.

Tony on guitar, Peter, guitar and vocals and Bryn Bright on bass and vocals, along with Sharon Gilchrist, mandolin and vocals, tug on your emotions from the outset with the haunting “Dust Bowl Children.” From there it only gets better as this very inspired quartet performs the lovely “To Live is to Fly,” featuring vocal harmony and Sharon ’s gorgeous mandolin lead.

Of course, no Rowan/Rice collection would be complete without the classics. Rice and Rowan stage a guitar duel on the timeless “Shady Grove,” with Tony on flatpick guitar, Peter on fingerstyle guitar and Bryn contributing a fine bass lead. Rowan’s bluesy “Walls of Time,” again showcases Bryn’s bass work. “The Sunny Side of the Mountain” moves, opening with Tony’s smoldering guitar lead backed by Sharon ’s solid mandolin chunks before Peter dives in with his trademark powerful tenor lead. The lovely high harmony just has to be experienced to be appreciated. “Midnight Moonlight,” an eight-minutes, mind blowing acoustic jam, features the quartet at it’s best.

Of course, any recording featuring Peter or Tony ignites excitement among the fans, but these two together, along with Bryn and Sharon are headed for “collector’s item” status.