He saunters onto stage wearing one of his seemingly infinite number of rhinestone-studded, brightly colored suits that would surely make Porter Wagoner proud. He instantly engages the audience with his quick wit and persona, then proceeds to enthrall them with some of the finest country and bluegrass music one can hear in these days of formulaic Nashville schlock.

Jim Lauderdale is the real thing, a man whose music and stage personality are as real as yours or mine. A Carolina boy, Lauderdale has become an A-list songwriter in Nashville, with songs recorded by Patty Loveless, Solomon Burke, Dave Edmunds, John Mayall, Vince Gill, George Strait and The Dixie Chicks, just to name a few. He has toured with Lucinda Williams, Mary Chapin Carpenter and Elvis Costello, among others. A two-time Grammy winner, Lauderdale has made albums with the great Dr. Ralph Stanley, Donna the Buffalo, and now has released the third album entirely co-written with former Grateful Dead lyricist Robert Hunter, titled “Reason and Rhyme.”

The collaboration has produced two previous albums, 2004's “Headed for the Hills” and 2010's “Patchwork River,” both receiving high praise from critics and fans alike. Building upon their repertoire, “Reason and Rhyme” is the band’s first album that concentrates on bluegrass originals, and is chock full of great songs destined to become bluegrass standards.

Tapping the talents of Mike Compton (Nashville Bluegrass Band) on mandolin, Jay Weaver (Dolly Parton, Tanya Tucker) on bass, Scott Vestal (Doyle Lawson's Quicksilver, Sam Bush) on banjo, Tim Crouch (Vince Gill, Marty Stuart) on fiddle, Clay Hess (Ricky Skaggs) on guitar, and with Randy Kohrs (Dolly Parton, Dierks Bentley) producing, the performances are stunning and the songs are delightful.

With “Reason and Rhyme,” there is no doubt that Jim Lauderdale is the reason, Robert Hunter is the rhyme and the listener is the winner.