Hailing from Hephzibah, Georgia (near Augusta), a town that was once known as Brothersville before 1870, Doug Flowers plays mandolin and has performed with Betty Fisher and the Dixie Mountain Boys, Little Roy and Lizzie, and the Clinton Gregory Band. Originally forming a band called Avalanche, his group is now known as the Doug Flowers Band and also includes his brother Dwayne Flowers (electric bass), brothers Aaron Lamb (banjo) and Joshua Lamb (rhythm guitar), along with Edward Dalton (lead guitar).

Doug Flowers has released some previous albums, Georgia Rose in 2015, and his Favorites album in 2017. With a cast of stellar session musicians, I especially liked Favorites, and his earthy presentation of self-penned originals like “The South,” “Hello to Grace Today,” and “Her Cheating Kind.” Flowers’ songs have been recorded by Clinton Gregory, Betty Fisher, Ronnie Bowman, Valerie Smith, Little Roy and Lizzie Long.

Doug Flowers Band’s 2021 Brothersville project is a very nice showcase for the band’s current lineup and their contemporary approach to bluegrass, without losing sight of the genre’s roots. The nine tracks include a nod to tradition (“Teardrops in My Eyes”), enchanting Gospel (“Preachin’, Prayin’ Singing’” and “How Great Thou Art”), but their strength is an open-minded vision towards eclectic material such as “Good Saddles Ain’t Cheap” and “I Don’t Want to Hear It.”

While Doug Flowers does most of the lead singing, Dwayne Flowers and Edward Dalton also are featured. Aaron Lamb’s driving instrumental “Brothersville Breakdown” is a snappy number, and I was only left wishing they’d enlisted a hot fiddler like Ronnie Stewart or Tim Crouch to lay down some tracks. Closing with “Ramblin’ Man” and “White Freight Liner Blues,” Doug Flowers Band shows that they’ve got what it takes, and a penchant for a variety of bluegrass merging music from a wealth of styles within the genre. (Joe Ross, Roots Music Report)