Bluegrass duo The Roys performed at Nashville's legendary venue The Station Inn on Thursday, May 5 as part of the Station Inn Sessions with Mike Terry on WSM. The concert was in support of the pair's new album Lonesome Whistle, which recently reached #7 on Billboard's Bluegrass Album chart. This was the first Nashville performance for siblings Lee and Elaine Roy since the album's release.
Though they were backed by an expert band, the primary focus of the night remained as it should on the vocal qualities of Lee and Elaine. Unlike many bluegrass acts, where the focus is often on blazing musicianship, the challenge for these musicians is essentially to provide bed tracks for the vocal harmonies of the Roys, while laying back in a style that is busy by its very nature.
The pair alternated singing lead every other song for most of the night, which provided an interesting contrast in performing styles that helped to make for a well-paced set. It also allowed them to serve up a steady diet of differing moods and tempos that kept things fresh and didn't allow the set to fall into any one predictable furrow. The pair displayed a low-key but entertaining stage presence, with Elaine getting in frequent humorous asides about working together as siblings. "He can't fire me," she said of her brother. "He's stuck with me forever, 'cause Mom and Dad said so!"
That's not to say that the band members didn't get their chance to shine. Though The Roys are more of a song-based act than a showcase for ridiculous chops, there were still several tunes that featured long solo passages from the band members, as well as an up-tempo bluegrass instrumental that allowed each band member to cut loose in turn. The band featured banjo player Lee Kaufman, Tom D'Angelo on the upright bass, fiddle player Clint White, and Chad Jeremy on the acoustic guitar. Lee and Elaine Roy also played acoustic guitar, and Lee covered the mandolin parts on several songs.
Particular standouts from the evening included the opening number "Give a Ride to the Devil," the current single "Coal Minin' Man," title track "Lonesome Whistle," and "Trailblazer." "Nothing I Can Do About It Now" featured a chorus so instantly catchy that it could probably be a mainstream radio hit if we lived in an alternate universe where it didn't cost a million dollars to make that happen, while a stellar cover of "Blue Moon of Kentucky" gave a nod to the duo's musical roots. The pair traded lead vocals for "That's What Makes it Love," with Lee capably covering the parts that Ricky Skaggs sang on the studio recording.
The pair capped off the night with "High Road," a mid-tempo gospel-tinged number that provided a perfect showcase for Elaine's authentic bluegrass voice. "Thanks so much, we love you all," she said in closing, adding that she and her brother have shared the dream of performing together since they were children. They seemed genuinely excited about the success of Lonesome Whistle and the support they're receiving from fans and from radio. "Sometimes it doesn't happen in your time, it happens in God's time," Elaine observed.
That time is apparently now for The Roys and Lonesome Whistle.
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