September/October, 2007
Robin Bullock, "Rosewood Castle," Dancing Wolf Records DWCD-103, 2007
Brilliance isn't a word that should be thrown around very often in the arts. There are so many good, yea, so
many great artists that brilliance is the realm of few artists in any genre. It's a place populated by
those few who have risen to a place where their stamp is immediately felt. With the proliferation of acoustic
guitar music over the past decade, the sheer volume of excellent work is daunting. But steel string wizard Robin
Bullock's latest offering, "Rosewood Castle", is, well, simply brilliant -- a disc filled with fully-realized
melodies played with nuance and grace. Many guitarists leave the melody stripped to its bare essentials, but
Bullock is able to craft arrangements of traditional Celtic songs pregnant with everything the melody can be.
This CD brings some of the genre's best and brightest alongside Bullock in some wonderful duets: the gentle
"Raglan Road" with Alex DeGrassi; the well-known Irish waltz "The Southwind" with Al Petteway; an absolutely
blistering, toe-tapping, dance-inducing flatpicking medley "The Savage Wee Beastie / The Limerick Lasses / The Bird
in the Bush" with John Doyle; a varied "Breton-Asturias Set" with Tony McManus on guitar and Robin playing cittern;
and a lush version of "Down by the Salley Gardens", the poem by William Yeats, played in tandem with Steve Baughman.
The solo pieces that round out the remainder of the CD are played with style and skill -- always enough and never
too much playing, so the listener is served. In reviewing some CD's, I can tire of hearing the same songs played
through many repetitions; with "Rosewood Castle", I found myself happily hitting the play button once the disc's
lovely concluding track, "Rebecca's Hymn", had delighted me with its closing notes.
Mike Errico, "All In," Tallboy 7 T7032006, 2007
Mike Errico kicks off his latest collection with a rather ersatz proclamation: "lucky break / one I'm proud to say
I make / as soon as the clouds have passed away."
Why this veteran New York City based singer-songwriter has not (yet) achieved the chart success and name
recognition of John Mayer or Jeff Buckley is a mystery that may never be solved. For the record, you've
heard Errico on numerous TV shows, most notably "CSI: Miami," "The L Word," and the ubiquitous "VH-1 Pop Up" Video
theme. Regardless, Errico's fifth release in twice as many years shows the artist in a decidedly guitar hero
mode as every cut is a veritable lesson in how to groove without forsaking the song.
Listen closely as Errico's plucking, strumming, slashing, syncopated slinky six-string renderings push the
sexually charged "Girlfriend Weather" -- it's all one player! Blindfold any classic rock fan and they'll swear
it's David Gilmour fitfully sliding up and down the fret-board with clever sustained-chords and leisurely
executed arpeggios in "Run."
Like the finest pop rock composers Errico adheres to the time tested method of building tension in the verses
and letting it all hang out in the choruses. In the solo acoustic ballad "You Could Be Anywhere" Errico employs
sinewy guitar lines and abrupt moments of silence to emphasize his tale of romantic misery.
Errico's proclivity for drama continues to the finale "Better Here," a mid-tempo cut which gradually builds
with a pedal guitar phrase that gives way to sleepy slide licks and lush vocal harmonies.
Accolades must be afforded to the artist's nimble sidemen. Comprised of bassist John Turner, drummer Jonathan
Ellinghaus, and keyboardist/percussionist/producer Blake Morgan, each player epitomizes the
all-for-one-one-for-all ethos of ensemble playing thereby allowing Errico ample room ply his legato
melodies. However the lads do get to stretch out a bit in the new wave-ish "Whatever You Say" and the
funky "Something New."
Errico recently accepted a high profile senior editor gig at the gossipy rock rag "Blender" magazine.
Perhaps now he'll snag a Jessica Simpson, garner coverage on "Access Hollywood" and that get that break
he pines for in the opening track.
Mike Errico's Website Buy it here
Dean Magraw, "Unseen Rain," CandyRat Records, 2007
Dean Magraw's "Unseen Rain" consists of ten elegant tone poems played in an intimate trio setting. The guitarist
hails from Saint Paul and has studied at the University of Minnesota as well as the prestigious Berklee College of
Music in Boston. Magraw has worked with such diverse artists as Japanese musician Nitta Masahiro, classical
violinist Nigel Kennedy and Celtic accordionist John Williams. He has also appeared on Garrison Keillor's popular
radio show "Prairie Home Companion." Joining the eclectic guitarist on "Unseen Rain," are the extremely versatile
Jim Anton on bass and JT Bates on drums. All of the tracks were recorded live in the studio capturing the delicate
interplay between the musicians, not unlike the seminal Blue Note albums of the 1960's. The strength in this
recording lies in the ability of the three to play as a cohesive unit. While some of the pieces showcase Magraw's
innovative electric playing, his introspective acoustic work really separates the artist from other players. For
example, he produces long ethereal phrases and subtle delicate chord melodies on the pensive ballads "Keep the Faith"
and "These Voices." On "Eva Arriving" the guitarist creates an infectious groove in the Pat Metheny vein and on the
title track offers a nod to Bill Frisell. One can also hear the echoes of the great jazz masters from John Coltrane
to Charlie Parker throughout this recording. However, Dean McGraw is not content with merely sounding like the
artists he emulates, but has created his own unique voice within the parameters of his influences. "Unseen Rain"
is an alluring collection of sound paintings and is highly recommended for all fans of jazz, rock, and world music.
Chris Cortez, "Awakenings," Blue Bamboo Music BBM008, 2007
Light as a feather, "Awakenings" skims along like a
frisbee buoyed by an ocean breeze. Reminiscent of
Chick Corea's jazz/fusion groups of the mid-'70s, this
10-track collection features Chris Cortez's
flying-fingered guitar work as well as nine of his
compositions. But in true fusion fashion, it's an
ensemble CD, with each band member afforded ample time
to shop his chops.
After Cortez, Devin Collins' shows a nice touch on
keys, and percussonist Jeff Mills is a virtual rhythm
machine, especially on the opening track, "Arlington
Park." Kudos as well to contributors Glen Ackerman on
bass (most notably on "Territorial Imperative") and
Ryan Ogrodowicz on drums. These gents sound as if they
have been playing together for years, and they have.
High production values, although saxophones veer too
much front and center in what is generally a deft mix.
In a departure from his previous collections, Cortez
eschews all vocals, resulting in completely different
feel from, say, the more traditional takes on his
previous collecton, "Mum is the Word." A Latin feel
permeates the mood, especially with "The Rose of
Shalimar" and "Palmettos." All in all, this is a
pleasant aggressive/acoustic set from musicians at the
top of their craft. They lose themselves in the
composition without losing their focus on their
individual role in each piece. Quietly dazzling.
Nadaka, "Live in Paris," Rain Tree Records, 2007
Nadaka's current release, "Live in Paris," finds the guitarist once again collaborating with the Basavaraj
Brothers to produce an innovative collection of contemporary Indian music. Nadaka's personal journey is as
interesting as the rich and colorful melodic landscapes he creates. Originally from Canada, the guitarist
emigrated to India while still in his teens, completely immersing himself into the culture and music of his
adopted country. In order to overcome the harmonic limitations of his chosen instrument, he created a unique
hybrid guitar with a scalloped neck and moveable frets. The result is an instrument that can capture the unique
nuances of Indian music without sacrificing the inherent richness of the acoustic guitar. With the Basavaraj
brothers, Nadaka surrounds himself with some of India's finest musicians who play flute, violin, sitar, and
various forms of percussion. While the guitarist's command for his instrument is noteworthy, Nadaka is completely
egalitarian with his arrangements, allowing his talented collaborators ample opportunities for improvisation.
However, each member never uses their solo sections to exploit their own virtuosity. Instead, improvisations
are vehicles to enhance rather than detract from the beauty of the compositions. Collectively the group sounds
like an orchestra filling the room with vibrant sonorous imagery. Their melodic creations are passionate,
spontaneous, and meditative. Nadaka has found a unique and innovative way to assimilate Western and Eastern
musical styles. While an acoustic guitar played within the framework of traditional Indian setting draws
inevitable comparisons to John McLaughlin's "Shakti," this association is somewhat misleading. Nadaka's work
is his own and represents the very best in contemporary improvised music and is highly recommended.
Nadaka's Website Buy it at Amazon.com
Vincea McClelland, "Classique!," Coda Productions 8007-1, 2007
Over the last half-century, Canada has become well-known for producing several outstanding classical guitarists.
These musicians, through their recordings and concert tours, have brought international attention to Canadian guitar
festivals, as well as the pedagogues that organize and support them. One such guitarist is Vincea McClelland, who
for more than twenty years has been dazzling audiences in countless countries around the globe. Her most recent disc,
"Classique!", is a selection of works from three distinctive, guitar-rich regions: Spain, North America, and South
America. Interestingly, McClelland not only showcases how the music contrasts from one region to the next, she also
reveals the vast varieties of compositions within each individual region. McClelland's well-tempered musical voice
ensures that her interpretations are an ideal combination of mature sophistication and soul-moving energy. She
unabashedly utilizes her distinctive color palette to guide the listener through rich, sonorous melodies, as well
as bright, fast paced dances. Meanwhile, her distinctive quick attack on the treble strings is perfectly suited
for the many compositions which feature rhythmic bursts and sudden flourishes. In this recording, McClelland has
shown that despite all of her previous accomplishments, she has much more music yet to share with the world.
Vincea McClelland's Website Buy it at Guitare Diffusion
Jamie Anderson, "Three Bridges," Tsunami Recordings TS-1032, 2007
The promotional snapshots from the back cover of Jamie Anderson's CD "Three Bridges" are telling. Spanning more
than a decade of performance they show the evolution of this talented "singer-songwriter-parking lot attendant"
from a young woman with circa-1980s owl-eyed glasses to a mature woman with postmodern Elton John frames...
but always sporting the same infectious smile. The song themes, too, have matured and are now the stuff of
baby boom concerns which belie the smile: divorce, cancer, bariatric surgery. The title tune, "Three Bridges,"
is a metaphorical peek in the rearview mirror of her career and recaps Frost's "The Road Not Taken" using three
bridges over the Salt River instead as allegory for the obstacles and rewards of an unconventional life.
"Beautiful" is an indictment of our culture's obsession with slenderness, told via a conversation with a friend
who underwent weight-loss surgery ("Gone are her lovely curves and the shine in her eyes / she wants me to be
happy but I just want to cry / because I thought she was beautiful before"). "One Out of Three" cites a
statistic of those women affected by breast cancer and is a rallying cry to fight this heart-rending scourge.
Anderson is not all sweetness and introspection, though. She's able to very convincingly articulate that most
indelicate of expletives when addressing an ex-spouse who was stupid enough to spurn her on "I'm Too Busy Being
Blue" (hint: rhymes with "blue"). "Grace" is the name of the pre-teen protagonist who gets bussed to church
camp to find religion, but instead finds love with another girl... there's more than a twinge of irony in the
refrain "Hallelujah, praise the Lord." Anderson expertly intersperses these heady themes with comedy on
"I Wanna Be a Straight Guy" (her answer to Loudon Wainwright's "I Wish I Was a Lesbian"), "Menstrual Tango"
(a tongue-n-cheek ode to... well... you figure it out) and "When Cats Take Over the World" (a bizarre bit of
science fiction that must be a first in the history of songwriting). Indeed, Jamie Anderson's strength is
her ability to distill both the humor and pathos from life, and to present them side-by-side artistically
and poetically.
Jamie Anderson's Website Buy it at Amazon.com
Eastern Blok, "Folk Tales," 2007
This Chicago-based quartet is comprised of Serbian transplant Goran Ivanovic (Guitar), Doug Rosenberg (Saxophone),
Matthew Ulery (Bass), and Michael Caskey (Drums). Formerly the Goran Ivanovic Group, the group released its first self-titled
CD in 2005. Ivanovic also has two duo CDs under his belt with guitarist Fareed Haque. Downbeat magazine
has praised Ivanovic and Eastern Blok, declaring that the group "offers up fire rather than ice,
and the guitarist's amalgamation of flamenco, Balkan, classical, blues, and jazz keeps his band pushing forward
almost all of the time." Virtuosity is a constant with this quartet, and the breakneck tempos on "Tango Pajdusko,"
"Balkan Healer," and "Sapik" typify the group's approach. Ivanovic often opens on nylon-string guitar or bouzouki,
establishing rhythmic and harmonic underpinnings, after which the group develops each piece with complex,
rapid-fire unison lines. "Sorrow's Secret" departs from this formula, incorporating great rhythmic and melodic
subtlety, with Ivanovic and reedman Rosenberg alternately in the forefront. "Kopanitsa" strongly evokes an Eastern
European dance, with each soloist stepping out in turn before the guitar and reeds play some lines in unison.
The short "Moon in the Labyrinth" features Ivanovic's guitar in an impressionistic setting. The closer, "Tricycle,"
opens with a jagged rhythmic statement, leading into a brief, jazzy section with obvious American influences
(Steely Dan), combined with a bit of klezmer and Eastern Blok's trademark dissonances. The band sounds spontaneous
and live on this well-balanced recording. With releases like this disc supplementing this group's active performance
schedule, Eastern Blok should have a bright future.
Drew Gibson, "Letterbox", Cragmont Records CMR-0101, 2007
A Minor 7th dream. An independent release deserving mainstream attention. An artist with enormous writing, picking,
and vocal chops. A sound centered around acoustic guitar. Start with "Running from You" to hear Gibson-playing
solo-putting it all together. Lyrics? "A stepping stone for my brittle bones," and a refrain that morphs from
"Since I didn't do, running from you just might" to "ain't gonna run back to you this time." We're not sure we
believe him, but the music has something to say about that. Throughout, the six-string generally sticks to two
chords, the one (G) and four (C) with only a brief D7. So little resolution! Then, a brief instrumental ends with
a run down the scale to a full on D7 and a hint of swing that feels like a smirking kiss-off to the lady in
question. "Here in the Evening Too," the highpoint of the album, opens the set. It will arrest you on first
listen, guaranteed. Gibson and producer Marco Delmar contribute layer on layer as the guitars build over Robbie
Magruder's insistent brushwork. The bed for "A Country Heart," a Dear Sally letter from a country boy to a city
lady, is a quiet guitar duet with Paul Curreri. A nod to Gibson's influences turns up in
"Blue Shirt," a meditation on goodbye ("love you Elmore, Johnson, and McGhee / Got my shirt across the dashboard /
Darling, I don't want to leave."). The atmospheric "Maybe No One" uses a slinky '60's psychedelia setting for
some sensual singing ("Maybe you'd be a miracles cure"). "Letterbox," much gentler than its lurid cover implies,
could actually use a murder ballad or story song. Its rather cryptic tales deal, in confessional style,
more with loss than gain. "Letterbox," effectively showcases Gibson's spare short stories, smooth guitar
picking, and smoldering sexuality. The musical settings, consistently lovely, supply the necessary edge.
Gibson's words and hunky delivery supply a hint of melancholy and a healthy dose of male pheromones.
Drew Gibson's Website Buy it CD Baby
Böhm/Reuter/Lantos, "String Unit", Ozella Music Oz003CD, 2007
When I loaded my CD version of "String Unit" into iTunes, the all-knowing Apple software proclaimed the genre to
be "unclassifiable." Steve Jobs got this one exactly right. Dagobert Böhm, the production mastermind behind
Ozella Music, has made a career of seeking out music for his label which is unclassifiable and challenges
preconceptions of rhythm and melody. Böhm is also an acoustic guitarist, and on "String Unit" is joined by
Markus Reuter on touch guitar and Zoltan Lantos on 5-string violin. Although promo materials draw comparisons
to Oregon and Shakti, I can't appreciate more than a superficial likeness to either one. The virtuosic
improvisational interplay which is so much a part of Oregon and Shakti is only subliminal on "String Unit,"
with most of the responsibility for soloing falling on Lantos' very capable shoulders. If one is able to
step away from the solo and "virtuosity" as the only determinants of merit, however, there is much to enjoy
on "String Unit." There is a hypnotic beauty to this recording. Though many would refer to the music as
"ambient," there is a harmonic cohesiveness which places this music many planes above most ambient music which
can be directionless and dysphoric by design. Böhm, Reuter and Lantos are masters at creating a mood that
lives somewhere between mystery, cosmology and tranquility... and, yes, that is unclassifiable.
String Unit's Website Buy it at Amazon.com
©
Kirk Albrecht
Buy it at Amazon.com
Listen to "Come By the Hills" (mp3)
Listen to Robin Bullock (with John Doyle) at our podcast 
©
Tom Semioli
Listen to "Ever Since" (mp3)
©
James Scott
Buy it at CandyRat Records
Listen to "Mali" (mp3)
©
Fred Kraus
Buy it at Amazon.com
Listen to "Palmettos" (mp3)
Listen to Chris Cortez at our podcast
©
James Scott
Listen to "Gamapa" (mp3)
Listen to Nadaka at our podcast
©
Timothy Smith
Listen to "Un Dia de Novembre" (mp3)
©
Alan Fark
Listen to "Three Bridges" (mp3)
©
Patrick Ragains
Buy it at Amazon.com
Listen to "Tricycle" (mp3)
©
David Kleiner
Listen to "Country Heart" (mp3)
©
Alan Fark
Listen to "Indiaespara" (mp3)
 (Click on image below to buy) |
 DVD: John Doyle - Irish Rhythm Guitar |
 DVD: Al Petteway - Celtic Instrumentals |
 How to Play in DADGAD Tuning |