Strummin' with the Devil: The Southern Side of Van Halen

There must be some kind of collectors' appeal to the myriad of intricately packaged bluegrass tributes to rock bands, because like Beanie Babies, they just keep coming. One needs only to read the title Strummin with the Devil: The Bluegrass Tribute to Van Halen to imagine the experience, but there's something "extra special" about this compilation. Not only do listeners get to realize their dream of hearing Eddie Van Halen's "Eruption" played on a banjo, they also get legendary frontman David Lee Roth handling lead vocals on "Jump" and "Jamie's Crying" -- the latter has been turned into a waltz. Roth has always been game for self-parody (money), and he rises to the occasion, providing just enough ham to keep things in "DAVE TV"-land. There is little reason to go in depth here, as the genre is as predictable as it is perfectly executed, and depending on one's tolerance for novelty, the results are either stupefyingly brilliant or harbingers of the end times.