Bassist Mike Barber's involvement with Eric and Leigh Gibson as co-producers of this project might have led to the somewhat heavy bass in this album's mix. Because the Gibsons walk on both bluegrass and acoustic country roads, it was probably mixed this way to simulate a more country-like sound full of the low-end audio spectrum. Eric plays banjo and guitar; Leigh plays guitar. In keeping with their signature sound, vocals emphasize brother duet arrangements. Interestingly, Andrea Zonn guests as the harmony singer with Eric on his self-penned "We Won't Dance Again."

The 15 songs on "Red Letter Day" include five originals and ten others from Kieran Kane, Chris Knight, Bruce Robison, Ray Charles, Mark Howard & Kay Susan Taylor and others. Besides Zonn, other guests include Ronnie McCoury (mandolin, mandola), Jason Carter (fiddle), Marc MacGlashan (mandolin), Sam Zucchini (percussion), Russ Pahl (steel guitar, Wah guitar, dobro), Josh Williams (mandolin) and Clayton Campbell (fiddle). When songs include both mandolin and percussion, I listen carefully to ascertain if there are any conflicts. On "The Barn Song," "As Long As There's You," and "One More Try," we find that MacGlashan and Zucchini complement each other nicely, largely as a result of MacGlashan's use of tremolos and fills. The former and latter were both written by Leigh Gibson. 

In their earlier days, the Gibsons believed that "less is more," and sparse arrangements weren't including fiddle or mandolin. After their first album on the Big Elm label in 1994, they signed with the Hay Holler label. Winning the 1998 IBMA Emerging Artist Award, the brothers contracted with Ceili Records. In 2003, we were treated to their first Sugar Hill Records release (Bona Fide - SUG-CD-3965) that offered nine songs written or co-written by one or both of the Gibsons.

Then, with "Red Letter Day," the brothers who were raised on a dairy farm in upstate New York have yet another great release under their belts. There's a little less of their own original material on their second Sugar Hill release, and I wish their little sis might've been invited to sing harmony again. However, their repertoire continues to characterized by very strong material, many songs that have hard-hitting stories to tell or paint vivid portraits of people. Songs on the 50-minute CD include: 1. Lonesome Number One, 2. Walking With Joanna, 3. One Raindrop, 4. Red Letter Day, 5. The Barn Song, 6. I Got A Woman, 7. We Won't Dance Again, 8. Sam Smith, 9. What A Ways We've Come, 10. As Long As There's You, 11. The Prisoner's Song, 12. If I Were You, 13. One More Try, 14. Twenty-One Years, 15. It's All Over Now 

The Gibson Brothers fuller and more abdominal brand of bluegrass might be a bit heavy on the low-end, but that gives it both full body and mental capacity. "Red Letter Day" is a superlative and authoritative statement of their explosive sound. (Joe Ross)