The Adventures of Billy Barlow
Reviewer: Jane Ellen

The Adventures of Billy Barlow is a treasure trove of oft-overlooked material. Particularly rich in music from the Irish-American tradition (an area which is becoming more and more popular amongst reenactors), this CD is a compilation of sing-along, or campfire songs, that range from the rowdy and boisterous to the tearfully sentimental. As with all of his recordings, Jerry Ernst's strength is in his delivery: he sounds like he IS the man in the field, thereby lending to the historicity of the recording; a more deliberately polished performer would detract from the sincerity and charm of these renditions. If you're looking for tunes not generally found in Civil War compilations, this is a good place to start.