Rice Rice Hillman and Pedersen

With a country and bluegrass music pedigree as long as your right arm, Tony and Larry Rice team up again with Chris Hillman and Herb Pedersen for another musical go-round that finds them all at the top of their game. On the other hand, despite the formidable musical chops of all the players involved, this is not an album full of flashy soloing, but rather a laid-back, reflective session of superlative music that draws from a multitude of sources. Hillman provides a quartet of new compositions and Larry Rice weighs in with "The Side Effects of Life" and "The Year of El Nino," but just as telling are the covers, roping in such diverse sources as the Grateful Dead, Delaney & Bonnie, and Flatt & Scruggs. Every bit as in the pocket as their first outing (1997's Out of the Woodwork), this second go-round is solid American music every note of the way. ~ Cub Koda, Rovi