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December,
2000
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DANIEL CHRISTOPHERSON
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LAURENCE JUBER
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JIM HORN A Beatles Tribute (Jim Horn / Pathfinder)
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VARIOUS
ARTISTS
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ROBBIE MCINTOSH Unsung (Compass)
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VARIOUS ARTISTS Liverpool Sound Collage (Capitol)
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PHIL KEAGGY Lights Of Madrid (Word Artisan)
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JAMES COHEN La Tormenta (VKO)
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MARTIN TAYLOR Kiss & Tell (Columbia)
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PETE MARINOVICH Nude With Guitar Second Voice (Minstrel)
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TRANCE LUCID Vigil (Altra Mix)
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One of the great guitar
discoveries of 2000, the new CD from guitarist Daniel Christopherson is
filled with just about every sound and style of guitar playing under the
sun. Imagine an instrumental guitar album that embraces influences from
guitar giants like Hendrix, Beck and Trower all the while ushering in
up-to-date musical direction, guitar innovations and memorable melodies.
That, in a nutshell, describes the appropriately titled One Zillion
Guitars. Christopherson wrote, recorded (with some handy assistance)
and produced his 79 minute album and, after several spins, the care that
went into making the CD really shows. After nine tracks of high-octane,
fretboard-burning excitement, Christopherson continues proceedings with
several atmospheric acoustic guitar extrapolations that add to the
diversity and overall strengths of the album. In his extensive liner
notes, the Seattle-based Christopherson waxes philosophically on the
significance music has on every living soul. To top it all off, the CD
booklet even includes a guitar lesson called "Power Chords Are Good
For You." 
Listen
to RealAudio sample: 
The tribute albums to pop
legends The Beatles continues to grow. California-based guitarist Laurence
Juber has a special connection to Fab Four great Paul McCartney.
Juber, of course, joined Macca as the lead guitarist in Wings between
1978-81. Born in London, Juber was clearly influenced by the British pop
scene of the ‘60 and, in addition to his work with McCartney, went on to
record with top artists such as classical guitar great John Williams and
rock icon Roger Daltrey. One of the top finger-style acoustic guitarists
recording today, Juber is clearly in his element on his new solo guitar
tribute to the Fab Four. Even the cover art, a takeoff on the Meet The
Beatles album, is Beatles-inspired. Among the many highlights on LJ
Plays The Beatles are covers of "I Saw Her Standing There",
"Here Comes The Sun" and "This Boy". The selection may
be skewed just a bit towards the McCartney side of Fab Four greatness,
although the spirit of John Lennon is not forgotten here thanks to Juber’s
take of "Strawberry Fields Forever". Juber’s ninth album, LJ
Plays The Beatles is a most artistic and heartfelt tribute and is an
essential spin for Beatle fans. 
So many great artists have
recorded their own Beatles tribute CD or have appeared on any number of Fab
Four tributes. But how many artists can claim to have appeared as a session
player on an array of Beatles solo albums? Sax and Flute great Jim Horn began
his career with the great Duane Eddy and later went on to record with each
member of the Beatles on separate occasions. In the liner notes of his new CD,
A Beatles Tribute, Horn fondly reflects back on his memorable Beatles
solo sessions and his web site even features real audio clips featuring the
likes of George Harrison and Ringo Starr praising Horn. As for
the music on A Beatles Tribute, Horn serves up 14 well-chosen, quite
enthusiastic, sax-based instrumental covers of all-time Fab Four classics like
"I Feel Fine", "Something" and "The Ballad Of John
And Yoko". There’s even a cover of the Paul McCartney classic
"Mull Of Kintyre". As for Horn’s backing band there’s some great
support from guitarists Louie Shelton and Brent Mason as well as
drumming ace Eddie Bayers. Guitar legend Duane Eddy also adds
his electric guitar touches to a cover of "We Can Work It Out".
Pictures of Horn with each of the remaining Fabs in the CD booklet adds to
timeless spirit of this elegant tribute album. 
L.A.-based CMH
Records continues their bluegrass tributes to the Beatles with the
recent release of Pickin’ On The Beatles Vol. 2. Following up on
the success of Vol. 1, which featured cool country-tinged bluegrass covers
of Fab Four faves like "Strawberry Fields Forever",
"Paperback Writer" and "She Loves You", Vol. 2 serves
up more tasty covers such as "Help", "Get Back",
"Penny Lane", "Eleanor Rigby" and more. A number of
skilled, but unfamed studio cats, including guitarists Billy Troy (acoustic,
electric guitar) and Mike "Chickenhawk" Toppins (banjo,
steel guitar), give it their best shot and the net result on both albums
is a spirited, down home country pickin’ tribute to the greatest music
of the 20th century. Another interesting touch here are the cool CD covers
which spoof Beatle album classics Magical Mystery Tour (on Vol. 2)
and Abbey Road (Vol. 1). 
Nashville-based Compass
Records delighted fans of U.K. guitar great Robbie McIntosh with the
release of his most recent studio album entitled Emotional Bends,
which showcased McIntosh the singer-songwriter. Compass digs
into the vaults for their latest reissue from Robbie. Unsung was
first released several years ago and was offered on the Hitchhiker’s
Guide To The Galaxy website created by Doug Adams. In the liner
notes for Unsung, Adams details his affinity for the McIntosh
guitar sound stating, "It’s not folk, it’s not jazz, it’s not
pop, it’s not classical, it’s just pure, pure music." Consisting
mostly of McIntosh originals, Unsung also features several covers
of Thelonious Monk, Chester Burnett, Chopin and
others. An eclectic, entertaining collection of mostly instrumental,
mostly acoustic gems, Unsung serves up an ample array of Robbie’s
acoustic guitar wizardry and is ripe for rediscovery for fans of
the Paul McCartney and Pretenders guitar great. 
The latest project from
Beatles legend Paul McCartney furthers the experimental work Macca
began on the two Fireman albums released during the mid-90’s. The
soundtrack to About Collage, made for Peter Blake’s
exhibition back in Liverpool, birthplace of The Beatles, LSC proves
that like Beatles legend John Lennon, McCartney also likes to
dabble in experimental music. A joint production by McCartney, The
Super Furry Animals and Youth, LSC samples and lifts
various vocals and guitar sounds from session tapes The Beatles made back
in the ‘60s. Other tracks feature interviews featuring some astonished
passers-by as they were recorded by Macca himself on the streets of
Liverpool. Concerning the album Macca says, "It’s a little side
dish that is not to be confused with my other work. It’s more
underground than what you usually hear from me, but I like to be free
enough to do this sort of thing." The avant gard and experimental
nature is clearly not for everybody, but after mulling over the Jerry
Lewis pic on the CD’s cover it’s clear that long time Beatles fans are
going to get a kick out of this disc. 
For fans of guitar great
Phil Keaggy, the release of his two new albums is quite a blessing indeed.
Word Artisan has just issued Keaggy’s new pop album Inseparable
while also issuing Lights Of Madrid, an all-instrumental affair
that finds Phil joined by some great players such as Ken Lewis (drums),
David Davidson (strings) and fellow guitarist Andy Martin to
name a few. A impressive affair blending neoclassical, folk and Spanish
guitar music, Lights Of Madrid is a masterful effort by one of the
great guitar figures of our times. Describing the album Keaggy adds,
"I really like it. It has a Latin feel to it, but there is a bit of a
classical feel to it as well. World music, international music, classical,
jazz, blues. As an artist, as a guitarist, I have taken an interest in all
of those genres." A relaxing, nostalgic album, Lights Of Madrid is
one of Keaggy’s great instrumental discs. 
Ottawa-based guitarist
James Cohen recently released his latest CD and after listening to it
several times it’s safe to say that it comes highly recommended to fans
of the Flamenco guitar revival of the mid ‘90s. Coming from a rock
guitar background, Cohen had the good fortune of working with guitar great
Mick Ronson in addition to writing numerous pop and rock songs over the
past 25 years. After being exposed to Flamenco guitarists Paco De Lucia
and Tomatito, Cohen threw himself into learning the complex art of
Flamenco guitar while studying the lightening quick techniques of Spanish
Gypsy music. The results of his devotion come to fruition with La
Tormenta. Cohen’s technique and overall grasp of the Flamenco guitar
form is quite astounding. The music here flows freely and Cohen’s
approach perfectly suits his appealing original compositions. Several
other artists appear including Ottawa blues great Tony D and
guitarist Sue Foley. Cohen’s understanding of the Flamenco guitar
form has also resulted in his creation of the first Flamenco and world
rhythm metronome which he calls the VKO Mundobeat. A real treat for
Flamenco and modern classical guitar fans, La Tormenta is truly
guitar music for guitar lovers. 
Instrumental guitar jazz
doesn’t get any smoother than on the Columbia Records debut of
U.K. guitar great Martin Taylor. According to the guitarist, "It’s
really an idea that goes back to Wes Montgomery and albums like California
Dreamin’, which was probably one of the first commercial music
albums I heard that I really liked." Recorded in NYC and Nashville,
the CD finds Taylor accompanied by Eddie Gomez (bass), Randy
Brecker (trumpet), Brian Siewert (keyboards) as well as many
other fine players. On Kiss & Tell Taylor & company revive
vintage classics such as "Mona Lisa", "Midnight At The
Oasis" as well as the Hawaii "Five-O" theme and "The
Odd Couple" theme, written by ‘60s TV composer Neil Hefti. A
self-taught musician who has recorded numerous albums, including one with
Yes guitar legend Steve Howe, Taylor is clearly a name for guitar fans to
know more about. 
In the spirit of acoustic
guitar great Pierre Bensusan comes Maryland-based guitarist Pete
Marinovich. On his first album, Nude With Guitar, released back in
‘97, Marinovich accompanies himself on acoustic and electric guitars,
percussion and vocals on the title track. Enchanting, well-played and
extremely relaxing, Nude With Guitar is a great listen for fans of
acoustic guitarists such as Leo Kottke. On his recently released second
album Second Voice, Marinovich is accompanied by jazz pianist Elliot
Levine. Just as impressive as Nude With Guitar, the
all-instrumental, nine track Second Voice spotlights a number of
Marinovich originals as well as covers of The Beatles ("In My
Life" and "Michelle") and the Jerry Jeff Walker classic
"Mr. Bojangles". Jazzy playing with just the right amount of
classical, Flamenco and folk guitar touches, both albums feature artistic
guitar work and hold up nicely with repeat listenings. 
During the mid-90’s,
guitarist-composer Dave Halverson released the first Trance Lucid
album, Arise to favorable critical acclaim. Tastefully
influenced by the guitar-friendly electric jazz of Pat Metheny, Halverson
continues to add his own unique stamp to the developing Trance Lucid
sound. Now based in the S.F. Bay area, founding members Halverson and
drummer Terry Lee regrouped again with Bill Noertker on
fretless bass and have just released the second Trance Lucid album Vigil.
More dreamy and intricate sounding then Arise, the newly
released Vigil should quickly find an audience among fans of
tastefully performed guitar-based fusion music. Halverson’s vision of
intelligent and innovative instrumental guitar music is fully realized on Vigil.