Rhonda VincentGood Thing GoingReview

Music doesn't get much more quintessentially American than the endearingly rustic country skiffle that is bluegrass. Although the genre only dates back to the 1940s, it conjures up images of the first settlers beyond the frontier sitting outside their stagecoaches jamming with fiddles and mandolins. As a veteran of 40 years in the business (she appeared on her first record with her family band at the age of five in 1967) you would expect seven times International Bluegrass Music Female Vocalist of the Year Rhonda Vincent to be a staunch traditionalist, but much of Good Thing Going is unashamedly commercial, betraying the influence of the singer's 1990s foray into mainstream country.

Many of the songs in this collection are earnestly mawkish ballads, often performed alongside celebrated contemporaries like Russell Moore of appallingly-named fellow bluegrass royalty IIIrd Tyme Out and Mr Nicole Kidman himself, Keith Urban. These dalliances might attract a broader audience, but they are overblown, bland and lyrically hollow. An exception is I Will See You Again, a simple paean to the power of faith that showcases Vincent's note-perfect vocals and fiddle-playing without descending into triteness.

The Missouri multi-instrumentalist also ensures the purists won't go away disappointed by including a few straightforward bluegrass numbers like Hit Parade of Love and Bluegrass Saturday Night. But despite featuring catchy hooks aplenty and the usual accomplished performances from Ms Vincent, Good Thing Going is ultimately guilty of trying too hard.