You are Always in My Dreams nominated as one of the best old time albums to come out in 2010 by banjo hangout and fiddle hangout!
Old TIme Herald Volume 12, Number 8 December-January 2010
Reviewed by Lyle Lofgren
Many of us are familiar with Meghan Dudle as a terrific square dance fiddler
and with her work with The Ditchlilies. In this, her first "solo" album, she expands that image to demonstrate that she's a versatile musician who presents a wide variety of music authentically, but with feeling.
We need a special term (other than "solo") for albums like this: a musician who plays and/or sings on all the cuts, but who uses other musicians in various collaborations. The result: a variety of musical sensibilities that holds our attention better than a band that always uses the same combinations. In this case, a total of nine other local musicians contributed to the performances. Dakota Dave Hull, at Aribica Studios, did an excellent job of making a very clean recording-the acoustics are just right.
About two-thirds of the numbers are instrumentals, but none of them sound alike. Even in the breakdown pieces, Meghan's fiddle ability allows a tonal clarity unusual for a fiddler. At the same time, she has the musical sensibility to allow the tunes to breathe. Some of my favorites are "Little Bessie" (beautiful plaintive melody for unaccompanied fiddle, learned from Clyde Davenport: Heavy with low drone, even though it's played in standard tuning); "That's It" (fancy uptown fiddling learned from the Mississippi Sheiks); and the title tune, a beautiful two-fiddle waltz learned from the Stripling Brothers. The backup musicians have obviously all played for dances before, because they keep a steady beat going, which Meghan enhances with her bow work. In fact, much of the artistic expressiveness of both the fast and slow pieces is due to her skillful attack, combined with slides, tasteful doublestops, and the excellent rhythmic sense you expect from a dancer. She has the skill to channel the great fiddlers that are the sources for her tunes: in addition to Davenport, they include Melvin Wine, Doc Roberts, Ernie Carpenter, and Lonnie Robertson.
On the vocal numbers, Meghan sings melody with one or two other harmony singers. The smooth, close harmony used here is more typical of the Midwest than the mountains. I particularly enjoyed "Down the River I Go" (Double Decker String Band); "Don't This Road Look Rough and Rocky" (Flatt and Scruggs); and "When the World's On Fire" (Carter Family).
The notes provide the sources (in case you want to go back and listen to the original), fiddle tunings, and who's playing what on each piece.