Keller & the Keels, "Grass" (KW Enterprises, 2006)

Interpreting other artists' work is a tricky proposition. Play it straight, and the listener might wonder why you bothered copying the original. Stray too far off the known path and risk the question: What were they thinking?

Keller & the Keels - that's guitarist Keller Williams with couple Jenny and Larry Keel, on standup bass and acoustic guitar, respectively - tackle the work of some "classic rock" titans, giving it a decidedly bluegrass slant, for roughly half the content of their collaboration, "Grass." And the results are quite interesting.

Grateful Dead fans will recognize two of the band's songs. Bluegrass interpretations of the Dead are nothing new; several albums have been recorded purely in that vein. Plus, Jerry Garcia dabbled in the genre, heavily at times, throughout his whole professional career.

But Keller & the Keels add some interesting twists. The minor-key "Loser," for example, begins and ends with excerpts from a completely different song that happens to share the same title, by Beck: "I'm a loser, baby, so why don'tcha kill me?" Hearing one "Loser" segue into the other gives the listener a chuckle, but it also works effectively.

The Dead's "Dupree's Diamond Blues" is more true to the original, which adapts itself well to a bluegrass motif, considering that lyricist Robert Hunter borrowed much of the content from earlier folk songs.

Keller & the Keels also cover two of Tom Petty's most enduring tunes in a medley called "Mary Jane's Last Breakdown." The result is somewhat of a mixed bag. While the playing and singing are superb, and the transitional element works fine, the trio takes the minor-key "Mary Jane's Last Dance" at a rapid pace, which sort of diminishes the dramatic impact of the stop-start cadence of Petty's original. Perhaps it takes a few listens to get used to the change.

The disc's real ear-opener is a rendition of Roger Waters' "Another Brick in the Wall." Bluegrass Pink Floyd? You have to love it, especially the way it's executed here: Jenny's steady bass manages to evoke the bombastic elements of the original in a much more subued manner, allowing the guitarists to create interesting acoustic textures throughout. And the lyrics seem just as relevant without all the sound effects and disco beats, even though Keller sings them out of sequence, with Part 3 coming in between Parts 1 and 2. No quibbling, though: "How can you have any pudding if you don't eat your meat?" seems like an appropriate way to wrap up the proceedings.

Along with the better-known songs, the trio also covers compositions by Tim Bluhm and Jeff Austin, and Keller contributes three rather irreverent originals. Those include the album's opener, "Goof Balls," a nod to the substances truckers are said to put in their bodies when they hit the open road. Lines like "Hepped up on goof balls, hauling the motherlode" are indicative of the theme.

"Grass" continues Keller's tradition of one-word titles for his albums, and he has another one planned called "Youth," targeted for this fall. Among his collaborators: Bob Weir (Grateful Dead, Ratdog), Victor Wooten (Bela Fleck & the Flecktones), guitar virtuosos Steve Kimock and Charlie Hunter, John Molo (Phil Lesh & Friends), Martin Sexton and members of the String Cheese Incident.

Now, that sounds interesting.

PS - Catch Keller & the Keels March 29 at Mr. Smalls in Millvale.