Railroadin’ through the Earth
The band Railroad Earth (RRE) consisting of Todd Sheaffer (vocals, acoustic guitar), Tim Carbone (violin, vocals), John Skenhan (mandolin, bouzouki, vocals), Andy Goessling (acoustic guitar, banjo, dobro, mandolin, flute, pennywhistle, saxophones, vocals), Carey Harmon (drums, percussion, vocals), and Johnny Grubb (bass) is a bluegrass folk rock band from New Jersey. Their style has been described as an acoustic version of the Grateful Dead during the 1971 era, which is “Dead on”- excuse the pun. What sets Railroad Earth apart from other acts is Todd Sheaffer’s exquisite song writing. Sheaffer’s writing style mirrors Jerry’s, a folk base with rock and bluegrass overtones. The lyrics are heartfelt and non cheesy which is difficult to achieve in this genre; not to mention he has a pleasant and unique voice.
Like the Dead, the live representations of their songs are heavily rooted in improvisation, yet they are not a jamband!? This is hard to swallow, because the last RRE show I saw was at the Greek Theatre in Berkeley, CA with String Cheese Incident and Hot Buttered Rum. The one thing that was apparent was that these guys can jam! And do so with the best. They had Bill Nershi as a guest during their set and joined String Cheese for 4 songs; all of which had lengthy jam sections. Proving that the phenomenal musicians that back up Sheaffer’s top-notch song writing are not scared to lay down the jams with the big dogs.
It’s true that this band is more of a singer song writer group but I would classify them as a jamband. Their cleverly arranged songs are easily manipulated into colorful improvised sections. The fact that these guys can lay it down with SCI is a testament to their jammyiness. Railroad Earth proves that they can produce remarkable studio albums but in my opinion they are even better live.
Like the Dead, the live representations of their songs are heavily rooted in improvisation, yet they are not a jamband!? This is hard to swallow, because the last RRE show I saw was at the Greek Theatre in Berkeley, CA with String Cheese Incident and Hot Buttered Rum. The one thing that was apparent was that these guys can jam! And do so with the best. They had Bill Nershi as a guest during their set and joined String Cheese for 4 songs; all of which had lengthy jam sections. Proving that the phenomenal musicians that back up Sheaffer’s top-notch song writing are not scared to lay down the jams with the big dogs.
It’s true that this band is more of a singer song writer group but I would classify them as a jamband. Their cleverly arranged songs are easily manipulated into colorful improvised sections. The fact that these guys can lay it down with SCI is a testament to their jammyiness. Railroad Earth proves that they can produce remarkable studio albums but in my opinion they are even better live.
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