Third Man Records

As expected by the group’s name, the Haden Triplets bask in the glow of tight three-part harmonies that could only come from the psychic connectivity sisters possess. Steeped in Appalachian and hill country traditions, these old-timey songs buoyed by fiddle, upright bass, banjo and guitar seem to float among the birch, conjuring visions of school marms and their babes on tireless countryside walks, the beleaguered laboring in the fields, and tireless souls lamenting life lost. These vintage folk numbers are the perfect foil for producer Ry Cooder, who adds some telling guitar in selective spots. The daughters of jazz bassist Charlie Haden—Tanya, Rachel and Petra Haden (all acclaimed musicians)—invoke memories of a bygone era of simple musical purity when a voice was instrument enough.