A masterful bubbling cauldron of mostly original songs spanning the American stringband, roof-raising Gospel and rustic country blues styles, performed by a virtuoso multi-instrumentalist from, unexpectedly, western Canada. This very satisfying album is buoyed by the artist's playful spirit, poetic soul and love of roots music. Highly recommended.- SS
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The independent music coming out of Winnipeg, particularly in the roots vein, is of extraordinarily high quality and you need go no farther than songwriter Steve Schellenberg's latest release for proof. While he's very much his own man, the artist he instantly brings to mind is John Sebastian; a similar vocal timbre, a similar playful sense of humour, a similar instinct for unusual melodic construction, a similar lyrical intimacy and humanity, a similar affection for American string band music, gospel and country blues infuse these dozen luminous songs — all originals, with the exception of the traditional pieces "All The Pretty Little Horses," and a couple of old-time jigs — which are built around acoustic guitars, banjos, dobro and mandolin, and are given an additional boost from exceptional fiddle, alto sax, piano, percussion and harmonica embellishment. A fully realized roots masterpiece, Run Away is a testament to the refined talents of a completely self-confident artist who deserves big time exposure in festivals and on concert stages.
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