Maybe it's a phase I'm going through. I mean, I'm 32 years old and I'm blasting banjo music through the speakers of my sporty SUV like it's AC/DC and I'm in a Pontiac Firebird.

Or maybe it's one of those things where you heard a song while having one of the best times of your life and now you enjoy yourself every time you play it.

I first heard Bela Fleck's Bluegrass Sessions while on vacation in Montreal with my wife. It was late August and it rained the entire week. The first night we were there we got caught in a downpour in the Old Port and took shelter in a Jazz Bar. It was early, like 9pm, and the bar wasn't really open yet. Chairs were still up on the tables and stuff. The bartender wasn't even there. The only people there, were three musicians getting set up for an evening of fusion jazz. And to top it, only one of them spoke limited English. After a lot of pointing at liquor bottles and snifter glasses we started drinking Galiano (my wife's Italian) on the rocks while watching these musicians unpack their gear.

Music played in the background from the bar CD player and at one point the English-speaking Canadian musician turned it up as "Spanish Point" played.

(Quick recap: I'm in a Canadian bar, watching French-speaking musicians, with my Italian wife, listening to "Spanish Point".)

I don't know how many Galiano's we had at that point, but this music was the most amazing music I'd ever heard. Without any vocals, this song told an entire story. It had attitude, it had feeling, it had passion. Again, I'm not sure how many drinks were in me at the time, but I really enjoyed this music. We asked the Canadian kid about it and he told us it was Bela Fleck, who I had heard of, but only in association with the Flecktones. He was real excited to talk to us about Bela and played some more of his favorite songs.

Well, we had a great time and we hung out until the bar filled up. We stuck around to listen to the band's first set, and maybe we might have been drunk by then, but they really sucked.

Nevertheless, we bought this Bluegrass Sessions CD the next day and I've been listening to it ever since.

"Spanish Point" is still my favorite song on this CD. And I still can't get over the intensity these musicians have. The amazing speed and crispness of the guitar work. It must be an amazing feeling to be able to write and play a song that you know no one will ever be able to duplicate.

I've learned a lot in the year I've been listening to this CD and have gained a greater respect for Bluegrass. The musicians that play with Bela Fleck on this include some of the greatest pickers in music. Guys like Sam Bush, Tony Rice, Vassar Clements (playing fiddle) and Earl Scruggs.

I must warn first timers that there are some "yeehaw" moments on this CD, but if you can get past the knee slapping and hooping and hollering, you'll find a great collection of songs performed by the Michael Jordan's of the music world.