Spring 2023 Short Takes Brief Reviews
Cam Olver "Staying In" 2022
Staying In, the debut EP from fingerstyle guitarist Cam Olver, opens with an old-timey rag-style tune, "Toasterball." With a lovely, contrasting chorus, this short piece bodes well for the rest of the album.
We continue with the meditative "Island in a River" with its wonderful Eric Satie vibe as Olver juxtaposes a major seventh chord with a minor sus, à la the first "Gymnopédie." Next comes a pleasant surprise, a
cover of Glass Animals' "Space Ghost Coast to Coast." Charged with percussive knocks and smacks, Olver's cover is as quirky as the original tune which, in turn, is a wacky tribute to a beloved and missed TV show.
The heavy vibe continues with the string-struck riff that kicks off "Bothered to Think." Olver drops the percussives for the final tune, "As It Gently Rains." Spacious chord voicings wrap a pretty melody in a
sonically bejeweled quilt, offering a lovely conclusion to a solid recording.
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Brian Clark
Eric Hoffman & Ken Hatfield "Stirrings Still" 2023
Baden Powell meets Michael Bublé. Laurindo Almeida meets Sinatra. Bola Sete meets Harry Connick, Jr. You get the idea. Ken Hatfield on nylon-string jazz guitar never disappoints, and this may be a first
time for him to join forces in a duo with a talented crooner whose style harkens to a time when the Great American Songbook reigned supreme. Eric Hoffman is that vocalist who conjures jazz synergy together
with Hatfield. The bittersweet catalyst to these collaborations is hidden in the last track "The Time I Spend with You," a tribute to the son of poet Annette Berkovits, and a moving story worth your further
investigation through this link.
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Alan Fark
Russ Hewitt "Chasing Horizons" 2022
On Chasing Horizons, Russ Hewitt offers a captivating mix of various forms of Spanish guitar music while adding his own pop sensibilities, in an ensemble format. Hewitt is ably aided by a solid band, and
accompanied by some top-notch guitarists: Nuno Bettencourt plays on the title cut, and Ardeshir Farah and Jorge Strunz of the amazing duo Strunz and Farah, lend their talents on two tracks, "Cubalia Café" and
"Sunset Samba," respectively. That is not to say that Hewitt does not himself display some serious chops on several tunes, with wonderful interplay between the players. Based on Spanish music, this is a
record you can listen to, or get up and dance with. The 10 cuts present a nicely varied menu of solid guitar-based tunes sure to please most people who want to hear fine playing.
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Kirk Albrecht
Doug Cox & Linda McRae "Beyond the Great Pause" 2023
This live collection gives listeners a good sense of Doug Cox and Linda McRae's warm stage presence. The duo accompany themselves ably on guitar, dobro, banjo, and accordion, and get guest support with fiddle
and background vocals. The title song, composed by McRae, speaks from the time of Covid, as she sings, "There's gonna be loss, but it's not without cause. We can choose what lies beyond the great pause." Cox's
"The Last Song You Played" is carried by a bouncy rhythm that recalls Mississippi John Hurt and reflects on a friend who has passed on. Cox and McRae's own songs sit well beside those of well-known artists.
David Bowie's "Heroes" receives an effective acoustic treatment. Other covers include Sydney Carter's antiwar allegory, "Crow On the Cradle", the Kinks' "Waterloo Sunset" and Allen Reynolds's "Ready For the Times
to Get Better". McRae's "New Tim Hortons" provides a gentle and effective end to the album.
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Patrick Ragains