The album cover is so spot-on, down to the "Tested and Grandpappy Approved" fake sticker and artificial record weathering. Family Shiloh consists of the Pennington family and many friends. These are tightly-arranged country-ish numbers with spectacular harmonies and a tendency to walk right up to a novelty feel--and then take a solid step back.

Family Shiloh At the Cold Copper Ranch (C-Side Records)

The easy comparisons to the Cowsills aren't far off. These songs echo country music over the ages, with a healthy dose of 60s folk thrown in. The production sound accentuates every piece of the puzzle, giving a warm, lush feel. That is certainly anachronistic, as are the actual subjects of the songs, which tend to slyly undercut the wholesomeness aesthetic.

There are proto-rock numbers and a couple songs that sound like would-shoulda-been songs from Altman's Nashville. There's a bit of the boom-chicka-boom, a bit of rolling acoustic folk blues and a couple swoops through western swing. All of it done with impeccable style and care. The totally earnest performances ensure that the ample musical references don't distract a listener from the extraordinary brilliance of the songs themselves.

Again, look at that cover. From the font of the band name to the perfect placement of the dog and the flag to the not-quite-a-price-tag, Family Shiloh has thought of everything. And it has put everything into this album. I can't imagine why (the effort staggers my mind), but the result is an album that takes full account of yesteryear and manages step confidently into tomorrow. So conventional as to be extraordinarily weird, but satisfying in a way that few albums even approach.

Jon Worley