Jeff Scroggins & Colorado, ‘Wall Around Your Heart’ [Exclusive Premiere]

Colorado-based bluegrass band Jeff Scroggins & Colorado are exclusively premiering their version of the song "Wall Around Your Heart" with The Boot.

"Wall Around Your Heart" was originally performed by Don Reno and Red Smiley, known together as Reno and Smiley, one of the most acclaimed duos in country and bluegrass music in the 1950s and '60s. They were inducted into the International Bluegrass Music Hall of Honor in 1992.

"This has always been one of my favorite songs from the first generation era of bluegrass because it had such a different feel -- chord progression, rhythm, etc. -- than all the others," vocalist Greg Blake tells The Boot. "And it lent itself so well to Red Smiley's smooth, rich baritone voice -- again, a nice break from everything being sung up in the rafters!"

Blake continues, "Jeff has been a longtime fan of the single-string banjo work of Don Reno and pays a nice tribute with his solo and backup work on our version. We also wanted to emphasize the beauty and genius of the melody line of this song by having a stark, a cappella introduction instead of a typical instrumental 'turn around.'"

Jeff Scroggins & Colorado are a five-piece band comprised of Scroggins, a two-time national banjo champion; his son Tristan, who is an award-winning mandolin player; bluegrass vocalist and West Virginia native Blake; vocalist and fiddle player Ellie Hakanson and multi-instrumentalist Isaac Calendar on bass. The group will release their newest album, Ramblin' Feels Good, on July 22; they are joined on the project by bluegrass fiddler Andy Leftwich, two-time IBMA Award-winning bassist Mark Schatz and harmony vocalists Don Rigsby and David Peterson.

Ramblin' Feels Good features 12 tracks. It leads off with a cover of Willie Nelson's 1977 hit "I'm a Memory" and also features "She's Got a Single Thing in Mind" from Walt Aldridge, Gordon Lightfoot's "Carefree Highway," Jimmy Webb's "Galveston" (made popular by Glen Campbell) and more. For information on upcoming tour dates, fans can visit Jeff Scroggins & Colorado's official website.

Listen to Jeff Scroggins & Colorado, "Wall Around Your Heart":