Chet Atkins and Tommy Emmanuel, The Day Finger Pickers Took Over the World. Atkins' collaboration with Australian guitar master Tommy Emmanuel is full of clever, beautiful writing; harmonious picking; and good clean fun. Emmanuel does more than his fair share in laying down solid, tuneful melodies; spinning off piquant, acrobatic solos; and singing with Atkins on the title track and the hilarious "Ode to Mel Bay." Shenanigans aside, the duo shines most brightly on originals, such as Atkins' catchy "To 'B' or Not to 'B'," where the two pickers mesh so nicely you can hardly tell them apart. And if Emmanuel's "Dixie McGuire" and "Mr. Guitar" don't make you feel good, you have my condolences. (Sony)
--Jim Ohlschmidt
Nanci Griffith, Blue Roses from the Moon. Griffith fans will have to have this collection of live performances, which combines the talents of her road band, the Blue Moon Orchestra, and the Crickets (Buddy Holly's old band). The full, powerful sounds include electric guitar, piano, strings, and percussion, all orchestrated around Griffith's inimitable vocals and trademark ringing strum. Her wide range of musical interests--contemplative ballads, blues, rock 'n' roll, honky-tonk, and even torch songs--shows why contemporary folk and alternative country is so hard to catalogue. (Elektra)
--John Herndon
Rick Danko, Jonas Fjeld, and Eric Andersen, Ridin' on the Blinds. Using traditional Norwegian wind and stringed instruments--Hardanger fiddle, Selje flute, and Finnish lap harp--to support the acoustic guitar, Danko, Fjeld, and Andersen have scored a solid follow-up to their 1992 collaboration Danko/Fjeld/Andersen. Fjeld, for those who don't know him, is a major star in Norway with a fine voice, assured guitar style, and lyrical writing talent. He gives nothing away to his partners on this album, which sounds somewhat like an echo of the Band resounding over the Norwegian fjords. (Rykodisc)
--Roger Deitz
Fivestones, Wee Onesie. This debut album from up-and-coming Scottish band Fivestones is filled with melodic, acoustic guitar-driven rock ballads. It's a retro sound in some ways, with vocal and guitar arrangements reminiscent of the Eagles and CSN?, but the band could also be compared to current British-invasion bands, such as Oasis (without the attitude) and Wet Wet Wet. Guitarist Gary MacBride experiments a bit with open tunings on his Lowden D22 and with a high-strung Takamine, and the result is an album that acoustic guitar fans will appreciate. (Midnight Fantasy, 3810 Woodridge Ave., Wheaton, MD 20909)
--Steve Givens
Tony Furtado, Roll My Blues Away. Since emerging ten years ago as a national champion, Furtado has been acclaimed as one of the bluegrass banjo's young masters. This record takes a surprising left turn toward old-time country and blues, mixing traditional tunes, originals, and a couple of vocal numbers courtesy of young guitar phenom Kelly Joe Phelps. Furtado's Gibson Earl Scruggs banjo is still present, but the spotlight here is on the bottleneck sounds from his arsenal of slide instruments: wood- and metal-body five-string resonator banjos, Dobro, and a 1944 Martin 0-17. (Rounder)
--Ben Elder
Blue Mountain, Home Grown. A way cool combination of banjo, acoustic and electric guitars, stand-up bass, mandolin, whistles, drums, harmonica, and twangy vocals drive this second album from the Oxford, Mississippi, trio Blue Mountain. The hot country rockers, like "Bloody 98," are balanced with a hearty dose of downers. The band is reminiscent of (and has family ties to) the now defunct Uncle Tupelo, with the bonus of female backing vocals by Laurie Stirratt. The songs, written by Cary Hudson, feature walking bass lines, pretty melodies, barking dogs, pouring rain, crickets, and dark, brooding lyrics. (Roadrunner, 536 Broadway, New York, NY 10012)
--Simone Solondz
Kate Campbell, Moonpie Dreams. What Christine Lavin accomplishes in her more serious songs--relating the inner secrets of urban, angst-filled Jane Does--songwriter Kate Campbell does for their country cousins. Like Lavin's and Nanci Griffith's, Campbell's perceptions are right on the money--palpable and universal. And her guitar work is part of the story, not merely a postscript to the production. (Compass, 117 30th Ave. S., Nashville, TN 37212)
--Roger Deitz
Michael Jerling, In Another Life. Jerling's fifth album (his first on Waterbug) captures him doing what he does best: studying the good and bad sides of life in America. He covers everything from small-town hypocrisy to the national pastime of whining to an ode to "Grandpa's Ukulele," which was stolen from his car ("It was just a Sears and Roebuck / It was nothing he could sell / I hope that junkie plays the pig / At a luau down in hell"). It's folk music territory, but along the way Jerling eloquently covers a wide range of musical styles, including blues, rock, country, and R?.; (Waterbug, PO Box 6605, Evanston, IL 60204)
--Steve Givens
The Herb Ellis Guitar Method, Books 1-3. This three-part method emphasizes fundamental chord progressions common to jazz standards, rather than modes or arpeggios. The text is always clear and concise, and each of the three volumes contains a CD, a no-nonsense aid in learning to improvise in the swing jazz style. The series will improve your technical prowess and accuracy as well as your ability to harmonize on the fretboard and to recognize notes. It won't give you total command over any jazz standard, as the introduction states, but it will provide you with a good start. (Warner Brothers)
--Charles H. Chapman
Charles Duncan, Guitar at Sight. Duncan's workbook aims to improve guitarists' ability to read music. Exercises span the neck of the guitar in segments, from open position up to the 19th fret. The student writes finger numbers and/or letter names underneath each note in the 165 drills. Answers are provided in the margins. The musical examples also briefly cover interval and chord spelling, and minor and major scale forms. The final pages give a nice workout on ledger lines. This book alone won't make you a great sight-reader, but it is a comprehensive method for learning the guitar's neck. (GSP, 514 Bryant St., San Francisco, CA 94107)
--Mark L. Small
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