May 31, 2024 — After the contemporary gospel of “Lay ‘Em Down” and the delicious backward glance at the 60s with Paul Siebel’s “Louise,” Benson — the collaboration of award-winning banjo player Kristin Scott Benson and acclaimed mandolinist Wayne Benson — are back with their first original since last year’s full-length Mountain Home Music Company collection, Pick Your Poison. Written by Wayne, “Donner Pass” is a mesmerizing instrumental that’s as somber as the tragic event whose name it invokes. “It’s a tune I wrote while traveling with IIIrd Tyme Out, near the location of the ill-fated Donner Party, who overwintered there in 1846,” Wayne says, referring to the band he’s spent two stints and nearly 30 years with — and the settler contingent trapped at the pass whose partial survival gave rise to horror stories that remain both vivid and controversial. And indeed, with help from long-time guitarist friend Cody Kilby, drummer Tony Creasman and Wayne’sbandmate, Kevin McKinnon (bass), the duo summon a powerfully foreboding mood that keeps a listener enthralled from its solo mandolin opening through a fade-out that echoes the slipping away of life in those of the Party who did not make it through the harsh winter.
Eschewing dramatic musical gestures, the ensemble finds its power instead in a series that combines the three melodic voices — mandolin, banjo and guitar — to offer the tune’s deceptively simple thematic elements in ever-changing configurations. Rather than a virtuosic performance, Benson serves up one made all the more compelling by its delicate restraint.
“This is one of my favorite tunes that Wayne has written,” says Kristin Scott Benson. “It feels dark, which is appropriate considering the title and location that it’s written about. The track moves a lot dynamically and I always enjoy that — I love taking a fairly simple melody and working with it to create different moods.”
“Donner Pass” is streaming in Dolby Atmos spatial audio on Apple Music, Amazon Music and TIDAL. Listen to it HERE.
About Benson
Benson is a collaborative effort between two of bluegrass music’s most treasured instrumentalists: Wayne and Kristin Scott Benson. With decades of experience in top-tier bands, both have established themselves as stalwarts in the community. After years of paving separate musical paths, the two finally decided it was time to integrate their identities and create something new together. Benson is their first combined effort, despite having been married for over 20 years.
Wayne Benson is a 25-year veteran of the seven-time IBMA Vocal Group of the Year, Russell Moore and IIIrd Tyme Out. He is on the short list of mandolin players who have signature models with Gibson Musical Instruments.
Kristin Scott Benson is a six-time IBMA Banjo Player of the Year and recipient of the Steve Martin Award for Excellence in Bluegrass and Banjo. She has been a member of the GRAMMY-nominated Grascals since 2008.