Sam Amidon is an exceptional performer - quirky, surreal, and deserving far greater exposure.Over several excellent CDs he has now also built up a fine summation of his recorded talent.He takes a tune from a distant American past and re-presents it to us with its often bleak message and unpredictable pacing but leavened by witty instrumentation and his uncompromising and beautiful voice.Most of the tunes have lyrical outcomes that are not of a cosy 20th century predictability but beneath it all Sam frequently one feels subscribes to Oscars' old adage that "you would have to have a heart of stone not to laugh" Anyone interested in a voice that significantly re-imagines and invigorates a lost musical age should buy this highly accessible album and go and see him -- he is a fabulous entertainer.