Michelle Lee On Air 
The album release spotlight I have for you this month is Crandall Creek’s album, Color Me Blue. Color Me Blue was released on April 25th and I will be the first to tell you, “It is an excellent album”. Crandall Creek is a band that holds a residency in Elkins, WV and have 50 shows scheduled later this year. The combination of their newer lead vocalist, Carly Greer, and their known heartfelt songwriting has definitely catapulted their music. Like past albums, you will get those well-crafted songs along with some new never-heard-before songs and songs that have been written by the members of Crandall Creek.
Crandall Creek created an album that is packed with talent. Color Me Blue has the 2024 IBMA Momentum Vocalist of the Year nominee, Carly Greer, showcasing her powerhouse voice throughout the album. Jerry Andrews absolutely knocked it out of the ballpark with his songwriting abilities.
The first three singles that were released off the album earned Crandall Creek spots on the Bluegrass Today Top 20 and their most-streamed track on Spotify. Falling In Love Forever (most recent release) is that love song describing young innocent love and honestly, there were a couple times it had the feel of a Judds song. Court’n Katie and Don’t Come Knockin’ are great examples of their high energy style along with showing their creativity. I honestly love the sassy side of Carly’s voice on Don’t Come Knockin’, it matches the tone of the message perfectly.
Carly Greer shows her enhanced writing skills in The Penitentiary. As the only writer on The Penitentiary, the song is a perfect bluegrass tune – it tells a story about a criminal doing those sneaking things they all do along with intertwining our favorite emotion, love. Another song that Carly took the lead on writing was West Virginia Moonlight. Carly and her mother Stacy Dietz wrote a beautiful song that will have your mind visualizing a beautiful day/evening in their home state of West Virginia.
If you are looking for a good song to tell someone how much you love them, make sure you give a listen to Promise Me the Moon and I Don’t Drink Whiskey. Promise Me the Moon, written by Andrews, is truly a song that demonstrates a love that everyone dreams of. Greer joined Andrews on writing I Don’t Drink Whiskey and it showcases their creativity of how metaphors in music can hit a topic right on a nail. Who hasn’t felt the euphoria of love with someone that makes them desire and want more?
Mountain Ways is an upbeat and great song about the type of people you find in the small towns within the hills. Neighbors have each other’s backs, willing to help, and their true love of their hometowns. Court’n Katie will make you want to sit on the porch with neighbors and picking along.
To add a special touch to the album, Crandall Creek brought in the 2023 IBMA Male Vocalist of the Year, Greg Blake, in on a song written by Jerry Andrews. The song Lazy Sunday blends the two West Virginia native vocalists beautifully! You can definitely imagine the sights of the gorgeous state through the lyrics and get an overall feeling of peace.
The last song on the album is the album title, Color Me Blue. This song is fun, upbeat and gave me the feeling as sitting in an old-time saloon. Color Me Blue is a great song to end an album with – upbeat, one that you will be singing along to, and making you crave more from Crandall Creek.
This album is definitely one that should be in your rotation, vinyl on your shelf and/or a CD in your possession. It has eleven songs that were written by Jerry Andrews, Carly Greer, Kathy Wigman Lesnock and other talented songwriters. Make sure you check out their website CrandallCreek.com to read more about their album and artists included on the project. You can also follow them on Facebook, Instagram, YouTube and TikTok with their handle @crandallcreek
Artists on the Color Me Blue album include:
Carly Greer – Lead Vocals
Jerry Andrews – Guitar and vocals
Dustin Terpenning – Banjo and Mandolin
Sav Nelson – Bass
Kathy Wigman Lesnock – harmony vocals
Andy Leftwich – fiddle, lead guitar and mandolin (Color Me Blue)
Darrin Vincent – Bass (Color Me Blue)
Jamie Peck – layered instrumentation. He also produced, mixed and mastered the album
