David Grisman
Dawg Duos
Acoustic Disc ACD-38 (1999)

David Grisman, mandolinist extraordinaire, is at his best when playing one-on-one with another musician. To be certain, there is an intimacy and creativity in the duet not found in other art forms. If you enjoyed him with the late Jerry Garcia, you'll enjoy him even more in pairings with a stellar list of incomparable instrumentalists that includes Hal Blaine, Bryan Bowers, Bob Brozman, Vassar Clements, Béla Fleck, Zakir Hussain, and Edgar Meyer. Each of these artists is an established mega-force (the exception being prodigy Julian Lage, who makes his debut here).
The most interesting pairings come when Grisman entwines his mandolin with percussion. With Blaine on "Buttons and Bows," the pair gives an unforgettable and amusing reading of what might otherwise be a nag better put out to pasture. Paired with Hussain, Grisman explores what can only be called a New World raga.
Of course, traditional musical styles are represented. With the late Jim Boggio, new verve is created and "Sorrento" swings. The "Mandoharp Fantasy" is an indescribably gorgeous exchange with Bowers. On "Clinch Mountain Windmills" Fleck plays Sancho Panza and the two fuse the classics "Clinch Mountain Backstep" and "The Windmills of Your Mind" into an amazing composition.
These are intimate artistic conversations on which we are privileged to eavesdrop. Thankfully, the exchanges are even; none of the discussions one-sided or heated. These are well modulated, masterful instrumentals to enjoy time and again.
— Linda Dailey Paulson (Ventura, CA)

Liz Doherty
Last Orders
Tartan Tapes/Foot Stompin' Records CDFSR1702 (1999)
Originally from County Donegal, Liz Doherty grew up around fiddle music, learning first from relatives and neighbors and then through her music studies at University College, Cork. She then spent several years in Cape Breton, doing doctoral research on the fiddle traditions there. She was a founding member of Nomos, and now plays with both the Bumblebees and Fiddlesticks.
Last Orders shines with a brilliant mixing of Irish, Scottish, and Cape Breton traditions, utilizing some of the trademark ornamentations of each of the styles. Doherty melds the traditions easily, and exhibits a strong ability to put together sets that build in intensity. The CD contains 12 sets of tunes, a mixture of recent compositions and traditional pieces picked up along the way. It is hard to determine standouts, but one would be hard pressed to top either the opening set of reels ("Daisy Bell/Le 24 Juin/Popcorn Behaviour"), the fine trio of jigs ("Hickey's/Crabs in the Skillet/New Hands"), or the sublime combination of strathspeys and reels on "Lime Hill/Trip to Miriam's/The Jinkin' Mermaid/Mutt's Favourite."
Doherty gets good backup assistance, especially from Ryan MacNeil on rollicking Cape Breton piano, Ian Carr on a sometimes-quirky but always-complementary guitar, and Gino Lupari, who can coax all manner of moods out of the bodhrán. This is a dandy release from a fiddler with technique, finesse, and a good ear for a fine tune.
— Ivan Emke (Corner Brook, NF, Canda)

Hui Aloha
Hui Aloha
Dancing Cat 08022 38053 (1999)
Hui Aloha (which means "meeting of compassion" in Hawaiian) is the name of the slack key band that consists of guitarists Dennis Kamakahi and George Kuo, bass guitar player Martin Pahinui, and Kamakahi's son David on ukulele. Lead and background singing are divided among Kuo, Pahinui, and the elder Kamakahi. There are two instrumental numbers and 13 songs (all but one sung in Hawaiian) on this first group recording in Dancing Cat's series of slack key guitar CDs.
The performers' interaction creates a rich musical texture that delivers equal and abundant amounts of sparkling vibrancy and soothing warmth. Hui Aloha draws much of its material from classic standards of the Hawaiian Islands, such as the tranquil love song "Sanoe," composed by 19th century Queen Lili'uokalani, the snappy, upbeat "Palolo" from the pen of Charles E. King, and a few numbers from the paniolo (Hawaiian cowboy) tradition. Dennis Kamakahi adds some of his originals, including the sweet instrumental "Monterey Sunrise," and a song about an old swimming hole called "Waipi'i" that carries the feel of the Glen Campbell rendition of "Gentle on My Mind" with guitar work reminiscent of small, gentle waterfalls. This is a CD destined to be played many times. A 16-page booklet includes all lyrics and translations into English.
— Al Riess (Buffalo, NY)

Holmes Hooke, Oliver Schroer, and Bobby Watt
Caught by the Tale
Holmespun Music HMCD001 (1999)
At its simplest, this is three friends — a poet, a singer and a fiddler — sharing a CD. Bobby Watt is in possession of a voice with power, tenderness and longing in equal measures. He is a master stonemason and an even better singer. Holmes Hooke is a poet with three previous albums and a host of awards for his writing. His poems contain more than a touch of humor which bubbles over here on tracks such as "The Nature of Things" (about the constant summer companions of the Canadian outdoors) and "The Jingle Stick" (about the hapless adventures of a jingle stick player — a jingle stick is "a bottle-cap encrusted hockey stick"). Oliver Schroer is a fiddler of immense creativity with a willingness to experiment, both of which are illustrated on tracks like the reflective "Exodus" and the quirky "The Daft Bird." Over the course of his five CDs, Schroer has traced a line from old-time fiddling to jazz, world fusion, and a few downright uncategorizable extensions of the fiddle.
On Caught by the Tale, these three gentlemen meld their respective crafts. Watt does four tracks (singing on three of them), Schroer offers five original tunes, and the balance of the 20 tracks are poems by Hooke (all original except for a version of "The Cremation of Sam McGee"). Schroer provides atmospheric fiddle in the background for the poems, which works especially well on tracks such as "The Amphion" (about a sea rescue) or "Night at the Zoo." While there is a lot of spoken word on the CD, its shelf life is increased significantly by the musical backdrops. This is a fine collaboration – essentially a portable arts festival.
— Ivan Emke (Corner Brook,
NF, Canada)

Derya Türkan/Murat Aydemir
Ahenk - Turkish Classical Music
Golden Horn Productions GHP 006 (1998)
Ahenk is Turkish for "harmony," and it's a fine description of the subtly complex musical interplay found on this disc, which features two young virtuosi in a recital of Turkish classical music from the late 19th century to the present.
Türkan, who plays the klasik kemençe, a three-stringed, bowed instrument, and Aydemir, a master of the long-necked tanbur lute, are well-nigh ideal as musical partners, and you don't have to be an aficionado to appreciate the quality of their playing. The contrast between the warm, soulful sound of the klasik kemençe and the muted jangle of the tanbur is used to great effect by the composers featured here, and both musicians make the most of it. But the real test of a Middle Eastern musician comes in the takasim (improvisations) – Türkan's and Aydemir's solo and duo improvs have a subtle luster that's undeniable proof that they've achieved "master musician" status. Overall, this is deeply satisfying music – Ahenk should have a lot of appeal for lovers of diverse repertoires, including Arabic, Balkan and Eastern European Gypsy music and (perhaps surprisingly) Western chamber pieces. The excellent liner notes are an added plus.
— Ellen Collison (Arlington, VA)

Los Fabulosos Cadillacs
La Marcha Del Golazo Solitario
BMG Latin
The great thing about the latest wave of Latin American records is how they challenge our con ceptions of what the place is supposed to be like. The latest efforts of Mexico's Café Tacuba, Pana ma's Ruben Blades, and Argentina's Fabu losos Cadillacs defy, prod, and pick at our generalized (mis)perceptions of how traditions can be interpreted.
Intellectually speaking, Fabulosos' La Marcha Del Golazo Solitario's sister disc is Bob Dylan's Desire – an album that combined a variety of traditional American folk musics and reformatted them for future generations. Instead of aping the elements, though, the Buenos Aires band takes the concept and redraws it for Hispania; in the place of country and bluegrass music, the octet create an incredibly cosmopolitan sound drawing from tango, samba, waltzes, reggae, jazz, rock, and ubiquitous Argentinean-style football chanting. If they err in one area, it's their ambition; at times noodling rears its ugly head and takes away from their excellent compositions. Yet on the bulk of the tracks, they have also come to terms with their musicality, deftly handling tricky tempo or rhythm changes as well as demonstrating the all-important ability to be as tender as their hearts desire. At times, like on the lilting samba fusion "C.J.," the results are exceedingly kind-hearted, while on others, like the rock-tango of "La Rosca," they are energizing, though no less expressive.
— David Oancia Prieto (Madrid, Spain)