Bonnie Leigh, a New Jersey native, is a prolific artist who has performed traditional folk music professionally for more than 10 years. Her most recent of many releases, Bridge of Flowers, finds her doing mostly original songs with a few traditional folk songs by such writers as Bordeleaux Bryant and Pete Seeger. With the able assistance of husband-wife teams Heidi and John Cerrigione and Neal and Coleen Walters, along with special guest Tom White, we are presented with fourteen songs about life, family and nature, always laced with hope and faith. The themes of the songs include such diverse topics as moonshine, the Gospel, fabric shopping, quilting and the Pine Barrens in South Jersey, to name just a few.

Bridge of Flowers opens appropriately enough with "Bridge of Flowers," which is the true story of the preservation of an old trolley bridge in Shelburne Falls, Mass. However in my opinion, this is one of the weaker tracks on the CD. Standout tracks on Bridge Of Flowers are "Grandpa Loves Grandma," a song about how Grandpa had a love for both Grandma and his still, the Gospel song "Life's Railway to Heaven," and "The Lonely Solder," a song about Neal Walters' dedication to preserving the old music. Other notable cuts are "In the Cabin," a poignant story, "Tails in the Woods" (a song children would love), the Pete Seeger tune "Sailing Down This Golden River" and "Mountain Waltz," written by Bonnie for her good friends the Cerrigiones.

While the vocals on the CD are tight and quite serviceable, it is in the instrumentation that Bridge Of Flowers really shines. Instruments include guitar, autoharp, mountain and hammered dulcimers, banjo, fiddle, steel guitar, mandolin, concertina and bass. The melodies, typical of much of the traditional folk music, are simple, sometimes to the point of the tunes sounding like the same song speeded up or slowed down. And therein will lie the problem for those not used to the traditional music. However at 56:30 Bridge Of Flowers gives great value for the money and I would not hesitate to recommend the CD to anyone who likes music performed on the traditional instruments.

[ by Robert Buck ]