Let 'Er Go, Boys (Rounder, 2006)

What else would you expect from one of the best fiddlers in bluegrass but one of the best albums of the year? Michael Cleveland wasn't stingy with the music, cutting 17 tracks of some of the tightest instrumentals you'll hear with the incredible Jason Moore on bass, Audie Blaylock (guitar), Charlie Cushman (banjo) and Jesse Brock (mandolin). Reels, rags, a stomp and "The Old Brown County Barn" show off their skills.

He didn't slight vocalists, either. Vince Gill and Dan Tyminski team on "Dark As The Night, Blue As The Day," and Del McCoury contributes a happy-go-lucky "Montana Cowboy. Larry Sparks, as only he can, sings the haunting "Old Man and His Fiddle" with Rob Ickes on Dobro. The variety of singers and songs keeps your interest on a keen edge from start to finish.

Cleveland displays the depth of his talent, not only as an IBMA award winning fiddler, but also on guitar and mandolin, as composer and also contributing vocals on several cuts.