The 1861 Project
Various Artists
CD ($15.99)
Released in timing with the 150th anniversary of the beginning of the American Civil War, this evocative musical narrative spins a cast of characters—both historical and invented—whose stories convey what it was like to live during, and through, the conflict. History buffs will enjoy the compelling perspective of “I Have,” which recounts the story of a man walking the hundreds of miles home, barefoot, from the surrender at Appomattox; the melancholy “The Old Bell,” about a Southern community’s fixture that gets melted down to make bullets; and the other 15 folksy, bluegrass-tinted tunes, all crafted by a group of contemporary songwriters and brought to musical life numerous talented vocalists, pickers, strummers and pluckers, including country stars John Anderson and Marty Stuart.
