As mentioned before, the career arc of the Lonesome River Band looks a lot like that of the Virginia Squires. They both had initial releases for very small labels which led them to record deals with a much larger label. In both their cases it was Rebel, who long with Rounder and Sugar Hill were the most important bluegrass labels of the 80s. So getting a deal with them to record and promote you after a single release meant a lot. The Squires and the lonesome River Band have other things in common as well like sound and style. They were both primarily Virginia-based bands. Also, when the Squires broke up, their banjo player, Sammy Shelor, would wind up playing with and eventually leading the LRB. Another similarity is that I likely do not need to have a very in depth introduction to this group. They have dominated bluegrass for many years, especially when they added the likes of Shelor, Dan Tyminski and Ronnie Bowman. So it is nice to hear the earliest recordings from such a legendary group.