Bruce Cockburn, The Charity of Night. Cockburn's 23rd (!) album showcases all his many talents: soft acoustic balladry ("Pacing the Cage"), edgy electric rock ("The Mines of Mozambique"), instrumental guitar ("Mistress of Storms," a mesmerizing duet with vibraphonist Gary Burton), and spoken/sung poetry (the moody "Birmingham Shadows"). Most of the songs clock in at five or six minutes plus, leaving plenty of room for Cockburn's lithe fingerstyle solos and for the band to dig into grooves that feel like they could go on forever. In particular, Rob Wasserman's bass locks brilliantly into these songs, helping to raise Charity into the ranks of Cockburn's best albums. (Rykodisc)
--Jeffrey Pepper Rodgers
Eliot Fisk, Segovia: Canciones Populares. Fisk has recorded the finest contemporary tribute available to Andrés Segovia, whose romantic playing introduced the guitar to a wide audience and established it as a serious instrument before the time of Ramón Montoya, Robert Johnson, and Django Reinhardt. This CD includes first recordings of 19 previously unknown Segovia compositions and arrangements, 12 miniatures associated with the master, and compositional tributes by Tansman, Roussel, Milhaud, and Castelnuovo-Tedesco. Fisk strives for the rich sound, expressive vibrato, and rhythmic freedom associated with Segovia's playing. His love, respect, and admiration for Segovia's achievements can be heard in every selection. (MusicMasters, 1710 Highway 35, Oakhurst, NJ 07755)
--Scott Cmiel
Bill White Acre, Billy's Not Bitter. This is a truly eclectic collection of pop songs, about half of which feature acoustic guitar. White Acre is keenly aware of tone, whether he's layering acoustics, electrics, and keyboards to create a Queen-like rock opera sound ("Just a Dream"); blazing through a slap funk/slide solo ("Sample the Gods"); or strumming backup on a vulnerable love song ("Come Clean"). White Acre's work is effective, not affected, and the sounds stay with you. (Touchwood, 1650 Broadway, Suite 1210, New York, NY 10019)
--Simone Solondz
Curandero, Arás. This high-energy musical collaboration between Miguel Espinoza on flamenco guitar and Ty Burhoe on diverse percussion is difficult to pin down. Think Oregon-gone-Gypsy to get a rough idea of these melodic, passionate, intricate original compositions. The tunes range from "Man of the Shadows," an 11-minute musical bombardment, to a 35-second song-thought called "Once upon a Time." Add Kai Eckhardt's magic bass and Béla Fleck's mysterious banjo, and the result is hauntingly beautiful music. (Silver Wave, PO Box 7943, Boulder, CO 80306)
--Riley Tharp
True Life Blues: The Songs of Bill Monroe. More than two dozen of bluegrass' greatest players got together to record this tribute to the bluegrass legend who passed away last year. Musicians include past members of Monroe's band Vassar Clements, Peter Rowan, and Del McCoury, as well as contemporary stars like Sam Bush, David Grier, Scott Nygaard, and Chris Thiele. Brimming with great singing and playing and an obvious love for Monroe's legacy, this collection of Monroe's most powerful and enduring songs is a must-have for every bluegrass fan. (Sugar Hill)
-- David McCarty
Mary Flower, Rosewood and Steel. With her supple, low-register voice and on-the-money guitar work, Mary Flower is one of the best blues-based singer-songwriters working today. Classics by Bo Carter, Skip James, and Charlie Patton sit comfortably next to a half dozen originals, notably the hard-nosed "Your Baby Gave You Nuthin' but the Blues," the soft-hearted "Hannah's Song," and the sly guitar solo "Cock-a-Doodle Blues." Smart arrangements take advantage of some prominent sidemen (Pat Donohue, Amos Garrett, Paul Geremia, Steve James, Dave Moore, Geoff Muldaur) on guitar, accordion, mandolin, harmonica, banjo, and vocals. (Bluesette, PO Box 10222, Denver, CO 80250-2222)
--Russell Letson
The Los Angeles Guitar Quartet, For Thy Pleasure. LAGQ's latest release presents a superb program of Baroque favorites. The selections, by Handel, Telemann, Bach, Purcell, and Monteverdi, showcase a sumptuous array of musical effects--terraced dynamics, pizzicato plucking, and several varieties of guitar percussion. A sinewy rendition of Bach's Allegro (from Brandenburg Concerto No. 3) stands in vivid contrast to a captivating transcription of his Prelude No. 1 in C from the Well-Tempered Clavier. The Quartet's sidesplitting spoof on Pachelbel's "Loose" Canon, with reggae, montuna, hoedown, '70s funk, swing, and Gipsy Kings variations, reveals stylistic breadth and humor. (Delos, 1645 N. Vine St., Suite 340, Hollywood, CA 90028)
--Mark L. Small
Lily Palmer, Butterfly Zone. Former New York Fast Folker Lily Palmer is a polished bohemian poet and cubist preppie who inhabits the urban netherworld that lies between the mundane and the cosmos. Butterfly Zone is a uniquely good album, made to order for the My So-Called Life generation. More than anyone I've heard of late, Palmer knows how to sing and play to a microphone, and to summon forth the right sounds from the members of her band. (Demon, Brentford, Middlesex, TW8 9HF, England)
--Roger Deitz
Mark Hanson's Fingerstyle Wizard: The Wizard of Oz for Solo Guitar. More than any other Hollywood film, The Wizard of Oz is defined by its music. Without "Over the Rainbow" to sing, Dorothy is just a lonely girl in a Kansas pigpen. It is impossible to hear Harold Arlen's classic melodies without recalling the performances of Judy Garland and the rest of the cast. But Acoustic Guitar contributor Mark Hanson's graceful fingerstyle guitar arrangements reveal how good these songs are and how well they stand on their own. Hanson's versions (all in standard tuning) are geared to the intermediate-level guitarist and are presented in tablature and standard notation. A CD of Hanson playing all 12 songs is included. (Warner Brothers)
--Michael Simmons
The Hawaiian Steel Guitar and Its Great Hawaiian Musicians, compiled by Lorene Ruymar. For a style of such recent genesis, Hawaiian steel guitar has surprisingly tangled roots. Ruymar does an excellent job of sorting out the mess as she reports on the two competing claimants for the title of inventor of the steel guitar: Joseph Kekuku and Gabriel Davion. She also traces the histories of famous steel-guitar manufacturers, such as Rickenbacker, National, and Gibson, as well more obscure builders, including Alkire and Magnatone. Although this is not an instructional method, there is plenty to learn here. (Centerstream)
--Michael Simmons
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