All too often in the bluegrass world the emphasis is on hot licks and speed-demon solos instead of good songs.

That’s not a problem on this first offering from The SteelDrivers, headed by veteran Nashville tunesmiths Cris Stapleton and Mike Henderson. Each has penned mainstream country hits for other artists, and The SteelDrivers demonstrates the effortlessness with which their songwriting crosses genre boundaries.

The top-notch performances by all the band members meet the songs’ high level of quality, especially Chris’ startlingly soulful, bluesy lead vocals.