Carolina Chocolate Drops

It's no secret I adore old-time revival. I'll take something old over something new any day - and it's not just because it's all I can afford. (why isn't "a penny for your thoughts" a REAL THING? I'd be filthy rich.) Carolina Chocolate Drops know what's up, and I couldn't say it better than they already did:

"Tradition is a guide, not a jailer. We play in an older tradition, but we are modern musicians."

So I'll hush up quick on this one. Rhiannon Giddens, Dom Flemons and Justin Robinson assembled together under the tutelage of Joe Campbell, a then octagenarian fiddler. With a band first called The Chocolate Drops, they had their start in town squares and farmer's markets. They're now the first all African-American band to play the Grand Ole Opry.
Rumor has it their live shows crackle with the whole-hearted enthusiasm of their following. Young and old, stomping and clapping like they were dancing on the dirt-packed floor of a speakeasy. Jugs and bones are used as much as banjos and guitars; snap your suspenders and hear it all on their February release, Genuine Negro Jig.

Carolina Chocolate Drops // Cornbread and Butterbeans

Carolina Chocolate Drops // Live: Memphis Shakedown, 1.23.09