Gum Tree Canoe (1987)

About this title: Hartford's most even Flying Fish album, with equal measures of songwriting whimsy and expert musicianship, Gum Tree Canoe includes a number of tunes that would remain concert staples for the length of his career. From the relaxed stroll of the album's title track to a rendition of Doc Watson's "Your Long Journey" to an original breakneck bluegrass instrumental, "Jug Harris," there's not a clinker to be heard. Hartford's banjo playing is exceptional, as is the accompaniment provided by a host of fine country, bluegrass, and newgrass pickers, Roy Huskey, Jr., Sam Bush, and Jerry Douglas among ... read more

Tracks:

1. I'm Still Here [Hartford]
2. Way Down the River Road [Hartford]
3. Gum Tree Canoe [Steele]
4. Your Long Journey [Watson/Watson]
5. Jug Harris [Hartford]
6. Little Piece of My Heart [Burns/Ragavoy]
7. Take Me Back to My Mississippi Riveer Home [Carso]
8. Lorena [Webster/Webster]
9. Wrong Road Again [Reynolds]
10. No Expectations [Jagger/Richards]
11. You Asked Me To [Jennings/Shaver]
12. I Wonder Where You Are Tonight [Bond]

Note: This is a general synopsis. Each listing is further described below.