Every Time You Say Goodbye

Ron Block on banjo and guitar and Barry Bales on bass have been with Alison for years, and this version of Union Station sounds comparably polished and talented. I'm going to guess if you're reading this that you have at least a nodding acquaintance with Alison's one-in-a-million voice and the fact that while her bands are built to complement that voice - she also doesn't hog the spotlight.

On this CD standout cuts include "New Fool", "Who Can Blame You", "Heartstrings" along with the Gospel "Jesus, Help me to Stand" and the title cut.

Several of the tracks feature other Union Station members on lead vocals and although they vary from "good" to "not bad" - they suffer from today's perspective in that no one else in Union Station has a voice like Alison's, and no one else in *this* version of the band has a voice like Dan Tyminski.

Still - absolutely required for Alison Krauss fans.


Excellent CD   August 21, 2003
I am a newcomer to Bluegrass - bought the O Brother Where Art Thou soundtrack and got hooked on it. I was intrigued by the Krauss songs on that album and came to Amazon looking for more. The reviews told me to buy this album, so I did. And I am quite pleased with the purchase.

It is incredible to listen to such skill on the banjo, especially after hearing so much modern guitar strumming. That combined with Krauss' hypnotic voice make the album great. My only problem with the album was that Krauss didn't sing EVERY song!


Pure but fairly mellow bluegrass   July 12, 2003
 10 out of 10 found this review helpful

Alison Krauss has done much to popularise bluegrass in recent years. Her early recordings were pure bluegrass - this (from 1992) was the last album of that phase of her career. Her more recent albums have included other influences but I enjoy those too, in a different way.

On this album, Alison and her band, Union Station, work their way through a selection of songs that are generally not well known despite several of them being cover versions. Many of these are old bluegrass songs, but they also include I don't know why (Shawn Colvin) and Lose again (Karla Bonoff). There are also some original songs here including two by Sidney Cox (of the Cox family).

At the time, Union Station was made up of Tim Stafford (guitar), Ron Block (banjo - he also wrote three of the songs here), Adam Steffey (mandolin) and Barry Bales (bass). Alison played the fiddle as well as doing most of the singing. The four men could all sing and each of them can be heard on this album, providing harmony or duet vocals, but Alison is the real star.

If you are unfamiliar with Alison's early music, I recommend that you buy Now that I've found you - A collection, which I've already reviewed. That includes one track from each of her early albums, plus tracks not available on any of her other albums so far. If you have that collection and you are looking for more of Alison's early music, you will enjoy this.


New Grass Blue Grass Good Grass   May 13, 2003
 9 out of 16 found this review helpful

Bluegrass is cool again. Wait, when was it cool in the first place? I'm sure there was a time when everyone in town would gather together at the barn hoedown and Ma and Pa would take a spin on the dance floor. Well, this one by Alison Krauss and Union Station puts you there. It's a mix between traditional and an edge-off twang of new grass softness. It's the work that really heralded in Alison Krauss and her crew and dare I say laid a precursor for the popular runaway success of "O Brother Where Art Thou?" soundtrack and to a lesser extent the Dixie Chicks.

This music reaches me quite pure. There is something about an artist earlier works that comes across more raw, true, fervent, pure and "Every Time You Say Goodbye" comes across in places as all of these. Though Krauss carries the band's main moniker, it's Union Station that has the talent that stands out here. Ron Block, Tim Stafford, Barry Bales, and Adam Steffey trade off adding to the harmonies and take the lead in a few songs. Those songs stand-out to me. To my taste, Krauss' voice is a little too soft, a little too sweet to catch the down home spirit of bluegrass. She can play one heck of a fiddle, but let the boys sing for the most part.

Stand out songs are, "Another Night," "It won't work this Time," and "Another Day Another Dollar." O Brother, don't forget the standard "Cluck Old Hen," providing a fitting vehicle to showcase the talent of these talented bluegrassers. Heck, any one of these songs will have you jumping up from the kitchen table, grabbing the molasses jug and beating on or blowing on it, skipping around like a old cluck fool and sliding and kicking those boots across the hay-strewn floor. Yeeehah!!