Rating: 4 Pulses

Every now and then I listen to music that, regardless of genre, strikes me as genuine and feels like it was always meant to be. Vernon Oxford’s latest release definitely fits this category.

The songs are all performed in the tradition that the album title implies; gospel, country, and bluegrass. The instrumentation is true to this cause with pedal steel, fiddles, guitars, bass, drums, banjos, dobro, harmonica, piano, mandolin, and the occasional accordion interspersed throughout. Vernon’s voice has a smooth and convincing sound that feels good on the ears and really solidifies a unified sound between the different songs and styles.

Overall, the instruments and songwriting combine for a blend of very traditional feeling gospel, and clever, catchy, and just plain fun songs. Vernon’s fourth song, “Ho Bo” had me singing along the first time I heard it. Several others left me with a similar happy feeling.

Despite the traditional vibes, this album is not a cover album. Vernon, a four-decade veteran of country music, and his friend Everett Corbin combined talents and wrote all the songs on this album. Because of this, Vernon Oxford’s newest CD would be perfectly appropriate for anyone who enjoys traditional gospel, or traditional-sounding music in general.

It makes a great addition to any CD collection that is open to new songs in a traditional style.