North Carolina bluegrass band Steep Canyon Rangers performed two shows Saturday evening at the Old Town School of Folk Music. I attended the second show, which started promptly at 8 PM.

I was in a depressed mood when I walked into the theatre. Never mind why. But the music changed that. Beautiful melodies and tight harmonies brought me back from the precipice.

The Rangers have maintained great stability over their 23-year span. However, Aaron Burdett replaced founding member Woody Platt on guitar and vocals last year. Burdett melded with his new teammates admirably. A remarkable aspect of this six-piece band is that every member is a world-class musician. Each had a chance to shine, whether in a solo or as part of the orchestration, and I saw no flaws. 

With sixteen albums from which to choose, they selected songs like "Be Still Moses," "Afterglow," "Birds of Ohio," and "Fruits of my Labor" - all of which went over well. All their music sounded great, from high-energy to instrumentals to gospel to love songs to sorrowful ballads.

Their version of the Traveling Wilburys' "End of the Line" made me smile.

Music has the power to lift us up when we are down, and the Steep Canyon Rangers did just that.