Little Country Giants

In her essay “The Lost Art of The South,” Rebecca Parker laments the demise of the music Emmylou Harris characterized as having “that washed in the blood element.” For Parker, “The artists who embody the South do not wash worries in whimsy, but attempt connection amidst isolation, loss, and disillusionment.”
Think “The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down” or a tale from Eudora Welty. In contrast, most of the music played today on country music radio, as Parker notes, is about “what we do in the South … but not who we are.”

Parker grew up in Virginia listening to the same country music that Cameron Federal Cook and her husband, Russell Cook—the duo at the heart of the Little Country Giants—have been listening to and playing for most of their lives.

It’s to that deep Southern well of sadness that the Cooks return to again and again for inspiration. As Russell, also a painter and teacher at a community college, recently said, “Some of the songs I write have a dark edge to them. The visual art I’m drawn to is the same—it deals with the big themes of tragedy and heartbreak, death and destruction.”

Cameron’s approach is a little more lighthearted, offsetting Russell’s sometimes dour reflections with airy melodicism.

The couple first met playing in a bluegrass band in college. Russell played guitar, Cameron played bass. During a Christmas break they took some time to record what Russell calls “a rough CD” of some of their songs. The CD, a hit with their friends, gave them the confidence to step out on their own. They enlisted Russell’s long time friend Joseph Evans to join the band. “He was a natural guy to step in and do all the hot licks,” Russell said. With Joseph’s wife, Julie, they began gigging all over the Southeast as Little Country Giants.

That group released a couple of albums and were developing a reputation for a unique mix of ragtime, western swing, Piedmont-style blues and country music when thieves stole Russell’s Martin D18 guitar and Cameron’s stand-up bass. Around that same time, Evans, a lawyer, realized he had to choose between his growing law practice and the band.

Friends organized a benefit for the group and raised enough money to buy Cameron another bass. Russell had bought a mahogany archtop guitar just before the robbery, but the loss of their instruments and the disintegration of the original lineup broke their momentum. Added to that, Russell was breaking in the brand new instrument—“a completely different beast than the big bluegrass dreadnought (Martin guitar),” he said. “It took me probably fully a year to learn how to play it. It’s a guitar for playing single notes more than chords.”

Changing guitars altered his approach to writing. “It took me probably a year to write a song I liked on that guitar,” he said. The new guitar, smaller than the bulky Martin, allowed Russell to work on mastering the licks he’d picked up from Evans, who is a particularly nimble-fingered Piedmont-style blues picker. All of those agile jazzy breaks on their first two albums belong to Evans.

But it wasn’t just switching guitars that changed his approach. Russell had also been listening to “older folk songs, fiddle tunes and things like that where the melody is played on the guitar.” The shift in his playing was relatively subtle. The essence of Little Country Giants has always been Russell and Cameron, and while their understanding and embrace of the music has naturally broadened and deepened over time, their elemental sound remains unchanged.

When the original band dissolved, they began assembling a “gallery of musicians” who knew the music well enough that it didn’t sound “thrown together.” But lately they’ve begun forming another “pretty stable” lineup with a fiddle player (Rurik Nunan), a drummer (Matt Green), and most recently a dobro player (Jared Womack).

Their strengths are evident on their most recent album, 60 Grit. Listen, for example, to Nunan’s facile swing and Womack’s dobro—along with Green using brushes on the snare—spinning around the Cook’s airborne harmonies on “Trouble’s Hard To Find.” The three players form a fluidly elastic foundation for the singers’ eclectic approach, promising to make their Sunday show at Barking Legs one more to remember.

Richard Winham is the producer and host of WUTC-FM’s afternoon music program and has observed the Chattanooga music scene for more than 25 years - Chattanooga Pulse

The clearest way to express complicated emotions is to do so simply. This is exactly what Little Country Giants have successfully and consistently accomplished since their debut album, Just For This Songs Time, was released in 2003. The group hails from the sleepy town of Oakman, GA, and its members' Appalachian background certainly manifests itself in their music. Fronted by guitarist Russell Cook and bassist Cameron Federal, the quartet’s dreamy folk tunes and breathtaking male/female harmonies are reminiscent of another era. “Won’t Be Missing You At All,” off the group's 2006 album, Sing Pretty For The People, is, like the rest of its music, characteristically Americana—simple yet powerful, and deeply emotional. A true pleasure to the ears. - Flagpole Magazine

Voted Best Traditional Folk Act (Readers Choice), for Creative Loafing, Atlanta - Creative Loafing, Best of Atlanta issues

Don't be fooled by the "little" in their name—the music made by this husband-and-wife team is big, bold and bursting with vintage charm. Little Country Giants sprinkles a touch of bluegrass here, a brush of Appalachia there, and a heaping dose of songwriting talent into their sound. Though they be but little, they are fierce. - Scoutmob

“Little Country Giants: Back by popular demand this talented husband and wife duo of Russell and Cameron Cook will bring their full band with them for their return performance on the Mountain Music & Medicine Show. With three highly acclaimed recording projects under their belts, the “Little Country Giants” are one of the most highly respected and sought after country/folk acts to hit the music circut in recent years.”
- The Dahlonega Nugget

“Little Country Giants: Back by popular demand this talented husband and wife duo of Russell and Cameron Cook will bring their full band with them for their return performance on the Mountain Music & Medicine Show. With three highly acclaimed recording projects under their belts, the “Little Country Giants” are one of the most highly respected and sought after country/folk acts to hit the music circut in recent years.”
- The Dahlonega Nugget

“ The band manages to marry their instrumental prowess with their thoughtful classic country lyrics. The Giants have shown another facet of their strong country craftsmanship and instrumental chops. They have managed to make little country songs into a variety of things (simple, catchy & aching come to mind). [The Little Country Giants write ballads that] feel like a country dance under the Georgia moon. ”
- Twangville, Jeff McMahon

The Little Country Giants were selected for the Emerging Artist of the Year award by the Rome Area Council for the Arts. - Rome Area Council for the Arts

“Honest and unpretentious country tunes Little Country Giants are aptly named, for despite their relative lack of profile their new album shows them to be lofty guardians of the vernacular traditions of American music. Their sound confidently draws on elements of bluegrass, honky-tonk and western swing to compliment songs which are admirable in their simplicity and conviction and although they may not progress the genre to any great extent, their contributions often perfect encapsulations of its greatest strengths. 'Your Annie Is Gone' has a genuinely ancient and haunting feel, resembling some antique folk ballad such as 'Peggy-O', whilst 'Weary Worn Wanderers' aims for a stark, unaffected spiritual quality and succeeds.”
Kai Roberts - Americana UK - Americana UK

“Honest and unpretentious country tunes Little Country Giants are aptly named, for despite their relative lack of profile their new album shows them to be lofty guardians of the vernacular traditions of American music. Their sound confidently draws on elements of bluegrass, honky-tonk and western swing to compliment songs which are admirable in their simplicity and conviction and although they may not progress the genre to any great extent, their contributions often perfect encapsulations of its greatest strengths. 'Your Annie Is Gone' has a genuinely ancient and haunting feel, resembling some antique folk ballad such as 'Peggy-O', whilst 'Weary Worn Wanderers' aims for a stark, unaffected spiritual quality and succeeds.”
Kai Roberts - Americana UK - Americana UK

“Russell and Cameron Cook sound absolutely beautiful together. Their harmonies are tight, intricate, laid back, and smooth. Russell and Cameron have a gem on their hands and they should be proud of it for a long time. The songwriting, the vocals, the musicianship and production are all brilliant. Bravo for the Little Country Giants!”
- Unsigned Music Magazine

The music performed by Little Country Giants dates to an era where cowboys were becoming an endangered species--but well before Nashville endorsed drawstring linen pants, highlighted hair, and expensive porcelain teeth. Unapologetically Appalachian and unashamed in sadness, the band; composed of Joseph Evans (lead guitar), Russell Cook (mandolin, vocals, guitar), Cameron Cook (upright bass, vocals), Julie Evans (backup vocals), and on this evening (for the first time live) Jim Kirkland (fiddle), preserves the poetry of a disappearing rural America.
Their hour on stage expired much too quickly—but before they departed to a sincere (and extended) ovation they provided a series of memorable moments.
During the bluesy shuffle “Something To Be Proud Of” Mr. Evans flat-pickin’ on a tiny terz guitar becomes the dusty trail Mr. Cook struts down while boasting, “I have a reason to be excited / to comb my hair and shine my shoes / no ladies linger outside my doorstep / to hear me sing my old lonesome blues.” As the song blossoms, with Kirkland’s sullen fiddle solo and the dual female vocal harmonies during the chorus, we hold out a shred of hope for contemporary country music.
“Breaking Hearts & Living Free” (the title track of their 2005 independent release) closed out the set, and Mrs. Cook navigated the neck of her doghouse bass with a thousand yard stare and sang, “Don’t let somebody else love you / somebody else don’t know you, I do.” As tears well in several eyes, it’s evident to most that we’ve witnessed an incomparable slice of melancholy Americana. - David Eduardo

The music performed by Little Country Giants dates to an era where cowboys were becoming an endangered species--but well before Nashville endorsed drawstring linen pants, highlighted hair, and expensive porcelain teeth. Unapologetically Appalachian and unashamed in sadness, the band; composed of Joseph Evans (lead guitar), Russell Cook (mandolin, vocals, guitar), Cameron Cook (upright bass, vocals), Julie Evans (backup vocals), and on this evening (for the first time live) Jim Kirkland (fiddle), preserves the poetry of a disappearing rural America.
Their hour on stage expired much too quickly—but before they departed to a sincere (and extended) ovation they provided a series of memorable moments.
During the bluesy shuffle “Something To Be Proud Of” Mr. Evans flat-pickin’ on a tiny terz guitar becomes the dusty trail Mr. Cook struts down while boasting, “I have a reason to be excited / to comb my hair and shine my shoes / no ladies linger outside my doorstep / to hear me sing my old lonesome blues.” As the song blossoms, with Kirkland’s sullen fiddle solo and the dual female vocal harmonies during the chorus, we hold out a shred of hope for contemporary country music.
“Breaking Hearts & Living Free” (the title track of their 2005 independent release) closed out the set, and Mrs. Cook navigated the neck of her doghouse bass with a thousand yard stare and sang, “Don’t let somebody else love you / somebody else don’t know you, I do.” As tears well in several eyes, it’s evident to most that we’ve witnessed an incomparable slice of melancholy Americana.
- David Eduardo

This sweet acoustic country-folk act has the laid-back sensibility of Norah Jones and stylings of Allison Krauss at her gentlest. - Atlanta Journal-Constitution

This sweet acoustic country-folk act has the laid-back sensibility of Norah Jones and stylings of Allison Krauss at her gentlest. - Atlanta Journal-Constitution

"The appeal of Rome's Little Country Giants is in the give and take of Cameron and Russell Cook's sweet voices. Their second CD, Breaking Hearts and Living Free, offers simple, acoustic, country- flavored tunes that'll soothe the ravaged heart." - Jeff Clark

"The Little Country Giants take listeners to the front porch of an antebellum mansion. Everyone gets a rocking chair, and the fire flies flames are never extinguished." David Eduardo (athensmusic.com) - Athensmusic.com

North Georgia’s Little Country Giants played to a standing room only audience at Barking Legs Theater on February 4.
Delivering Depression-era country with a Dixieland twist, Little Country Giants played selections from their new album, Breaking Hearts and Living Free, as well as a few country standards to boot. The show was outstanding, from the timeless harmonies of Julie Evans and Cameron Cook to the virtuoso picking of Joseph Evans. Little Country Giants have the songwriting and performance chops to backup their nostalgia-tinged, Delta sound. I had a chat with lead singer Russell Cook after the show, who assured me that they’ll be back in Chattanooga very soon.
-David Morton
- Chattanooga Pulse

It's a toss-up, really, which voice hits the spot more: upright bassist Cameron Lee Cook's lonesome croon or guitar- and mandolin-playing partner Russell Cook's new-best-friend drawl. And when the two come together, you just might melt like butter on sweet corn straight from the pot. Expect songs of love and heartbreak and, when things go real bad, murder. 7:30 p.m. --RC - The Independent Weekly (Chapel Hill, Raleigh, Durham)

"Real traditional Americana, complete with three-part harmonies, upright bass and lap steel, is the next offering in Flicker, courtesy of Rome, GA's, Little Country Giants. The delightfully-twee hayseed-harmonies and old-time instrumentation of Cameron Lee Cook on bass-vocals and Russell Cook on guitar-vocals have an infectious quality; combined with the extra vocals and high country shuffles played by Dax Rosetti, on just a snare head with steel brushes, and Mark Rogers' lonesome lap steel, the quartet soon has the room packed and the crowd jumpin' in their seats.

The Giants' original music drifts between the cute-folk sound of the 1940s classic "You Are My Sunshine" and the Appalachian-bluegrass feel of "In the Jailhouse Now," with lots of sweet sidetracks along the way. While Cameron Lee's Allison Kraus/ Emmylou Harris-like vocal solos are the most beautiful, Russell is not far behind with his old ragtimey vocal character. This relatively young foursome is a gorgeous blast from the past; like a polished Airstream cutting through the city smog and rolling out over bucolic, daisy-dotted pastures."
Brian Gerrard
- Flagpole (Athens, GA)