KATHY MATTEA

Coal

2008-04-22

Country singer Mattea compiles some of the finest coal mining songs on this CD, bringing the joys and (mostly) sorrows of life in and around the mines to life (with plenty of them about death). The Sago, West Virginia mining disaster of 2006 compelled her to find the right set of songs to convey mining life and the best of them -- such as "The L&N Don't Stop Here No More" (#1), Coal Tattoo (#6) and "You'll Never Leave Harlan Alive" (#8) -- both educate and entertain. The closer, "Black Lung," is a harrowing a capella number, combined with an instrumental, "Coal." This set may not burn up the spins chart, but is a valuable contribution to the YCE library. 4/08 MJVD F-Traditional

Quick Links:

More reviews tagged #Folk

  • reviewed 09/2010

    DARDEN SMITH
    Marathon

  • reviewed 06/2008

    ROBERT FORSTER
    The Evangelist

  • reviewed 02/2008

    Caroline Herring
    Lantana

  • reviewed 12/2013

    WHISKY GENTRY
    HOLLY GROVE

  • reviewed 06/2012

    O'DEATH
    Outside

  • reviewed 01/2005

    Paul Brady
    Say What You Feel

Compiled by the WYCE Journalism Club

The opinions expressed in these reviews are those of the individual volunteers that submitted the article and do not necessarily reflect the views of WYCE or GRCMC; nor its staff, donors, or affiliates.