Faith, family, tradition and love are the key ingredients
that fuel the music of Jeni Hankins and Billy Kemp and all are to be found in
abundance on their new album PICNIC IN THE SKY. This hastily arranged project
for the Nashville based couple was an opportunity too good to turn down as they
headed west to LA after a chance meeting with producer Dave Way. The result is
probably their most complete album to date without losing any of the legitimacy
that marks their core Appalachian sound. If anything the widening of
instrumental input from the assembled session musicians, given the temporary
accolade of the Big Picnic Band, has enhanced the vocal elegance of Jeni and
the effectiveness of the harmony driven duets with Billy.
For the record, Billy is a city boy from Baltimore chasing
the country dream while Jeni is a country girl from West Virginia living the
country dream. Together they make sweet music as rooted in the sound of their
ideal rural surroundings as you could expect. Inspired by her ancestral
heritage and dreamy summers on Smith Ridge, Jeni recounts the tales of her
youth with vibrant pride and entwines them with the romantic musings of
literary giants like Austin, Bronte and Gaskell. The positive, melodic and spiritual vibes are
etched into the core of the record and in no finer detail than the standout
title track ‘Picnic in the Sky’ with
the striking line ‘frozen dinners were a special treat listening to radio
obituaries’ painting a vivid nostalgic picture.
All eleven tracks are originals, although spanning a near
decade in their composition. Perhaps Jeni and Billy had to dig deep into their
song locker to ensure this golden opportunity was maximised. Billy especially
had the freedom to relinquish his engineer duties to concentrate on guitar,
banjo, harmonica and piano as well as sharpening up his vocal contributions. The
duets are aplenty including the classic country waltz ‘Reckoning Day’ and the throwback style ‘The Old Hotel’ where for a moment Jeni and Billy almost revert back
to their normal duo status. 
As we have come accustomed to on Jeni and Billy recordings,
the stories are told in clear prose with ‘McHenry
Street’ being inspired by a sighting on the streets of Billy’s home city
Baltimore and ‘The Days of the Blue
Tattoo’ re-telling a story of Olive Oatman who was captured and
subsequently released by tribes in the Gold Rush days. One of the most
redeeming features of the record is the beautifully presented and highly
informative packaging. However this is only to be expected from a duo which extol
fierce pride in their work and come over even more sincere if you attend
one of their live shows.
From an album which starts with an up tempo re-write of the
traditional Froggy Went a-Courtin’ song, titled ‘The Robin and the Banjo’
and ends with the haunting gospel tones of ‘Made
as New’, the rest is filled with a glowing assortment of fiddle, steel,
banjo, mandolin and a multitude of percussion to convey the convincing message
Jeni and Billy want to relay through music and song. The duo have created a
tight touring niche in the UK over the last few years and maybe PICNIC IN THE
SKY will be the record to engage with a wider audience in the country, roots,
Americana and folk communities.
www.jeniandbilly.com
www.jeniandbilly.com