Lizzy Long's latest CD, Lewis, Scruggs, and Long: Lifetimes, was recorded with the assistance of a two legendary banjo pickers, Little Roy Lewis (l) and Earl Scruggs. The album will be released Monday, April 16. "I have been traveling for many years, but it is seldom that you see such a talented newcomer as Elizabeth Long," stated bluegrass legend Earl Scruggs. "She'll be a household name among bluegrass fans."

Lizzy Long's latest CD, Lewis, Scruggs, and Long: Lifetimes, is set for release on Monday, April 16.

The album teams Long with Little Roy Lewis, the seven-time Dove Award-winning front man for Lincoln County's own Lewis Family, and four-time Grammy Award winner Earl Scruggs.

Long's debut on a professional recording label was produced by Wayne Haun and Kevin Ward of Vine Records. The album captures the 23 year old's skilled instrumental talents and vocal prowess which give her the seasoned style of a bluegrass veteran.

The CD features traditional bluegrass favorites as well as original compositions written by Long, Haun, and a list of award-winning writers such as Joel Lindsey, Barry Dean, Wayne Kirkpatrick, and Mac Wiseman. The tracks include "Gotta Travel On," "One More Yesterday With You," "Catamount Chase Breakdown," "I Won't Keep Falling For You," "Bluebirds Singing," and the "Preacher and the Bear."

"Recording an album with Little Roy and Earl was an incredible adventure," said Long. "Whenever you get the opportunity to record with people who are among the best of the best, it raises your own playing to another level. It was a great learning experience for me. Making an album with these two legends was the chance of a lifetime for a country girl from Lincolnton."

A graduate of LCHS and Glenville State College in Glenville, West Virginia, Long has mastered the piano, the fiddle, the banjo, the resonator and bass banjos, the guitar, the autoharp, the bass fiddle, the mandolin, the trumpet, the trombone, the tuba, and the drums. And on top of all that, she has a beautiful singing voice.

Lewis, Scruggs, and Long: Lifetimes marks Long's sixth foray into recording studio. Her other albums are titled Me & My Fiddle, Chicken Feed, Dreams of Yesterday, Sing a Sad Song, and Some Sweet Day (as a member of the band "Mountain Fury").

In addition to other impressive venues, Long has appeared on radio's "The Ernest Tubb Record Shop;" at Dollywood in Sevierville, Tennessee; the Fox Theater in Atlanta; the Kentucky Horse Park in Lexington; the Wheeling Jamboree in Wheeling, West Virginia; and the annual Lewis Family Homecoming & Bluegrass Festival. The gifted, young artist is currently scheduled to perform at a benefit for Briarwood Academy on Tuesday, May 1, in Warrenton and at the Lewis Family bluegrass festival set for May 3-5 at Elijah Clark State Park in Lincolnton.

In his comments on Lewis, Scruggs, and Long: Lifetimes, Little Roy Lewis said, "It is a dream come true for me to record with two of my favorite musicians - one is a longtime friend and the other, a newfound favorite." In fact, it was Lewis who taught Long to play the banjo and other "bluegrass instruments."

During his career, Lewis has received awards for his showmanship as well as his musical ability. He and his famous family, known as "America's First Family of Bluegrass Gospel Music," were recently inducted into the International Bluegrass Music Association's (IBMA) Hall of Honor.

USA Today has called Lewis "a banjo picker, truly a picker's picker." His personal favorites are Earl Scruggs and Don Reno.

Speaking of Scruggs, Barry R. Willis, who has written a biography of the phenomenal musician, stated, "In all the history of bluegrass music, there are only two people, in the opinion of this writer, without whom bluegrass would not exist as it does today: one is Bill Monroe, the other is Earl Scruggs."

It was Scruggs who popularized the three-finger style of banjo picking that is a defining characteristic of bluegrass music.

Moreover, Scruggs and his partner, guitarist Lester Flatt, are responsible for such cultural bench marks as "The Ballad of Jed Clampett" from the beloved television show, "The Beverly Hillbillies," and "Foggy Mountain Breakdown" from the movie, "Bonnie and Clyde."

A member of the Country Music Hall of Fame, Scruggs received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 2003.

Copies of Lewis, Scruggs, and Long: Lifetimes will be available at all area music stores on Monday.