Guitarist Joel Harrison, impresario of the Alternative Guitar Summit, debuts his new label AGS Recordings with Guitar Talk, a long program of encounters with 4 other guitar slingers. There are also a pair of duets with the eminent electric bassist Steve Swallow, and the set concludes with a pair of Harrison solo excursions. Given the string-driven firepower of Harrison and fellow guitarists Steve Cardenas, Ben Monder, Pete McCann, and David Gilmore, I was expected a rowdier experience than the surprisingly mellow path that prevails. The highlights for me are the duos with Swallow, who brings a matchless swing to Harrison’s dedication to him, and lends an air of mystery to another Harrison original, I’m Still Asking the Question. The first of Harrison’s solo tracks finds him exploring Duke Ellington’s Reflections in D, premiered by the maestro in a 1953 trio rendition. Here it becomes a potent elegy, lovingly performed and imbued with deep spirit. The only jarring passages in the entire set come in Harrison’s closing solo version of America the Beautiful, with some chunky chords here and there and some biting lead guitar. Definitely worth a listen, especially for guitar fans.
AGS Recordings AGSR-001; Joel Harrison (g); no dates or locations specified; It Fall On You (with Steve Cardenas, Ben Monder)/ Sunday Night With Vic (with Pete McCann)/ Autumn in Olivebridge (with Ben Monder)/ Rebound (with Pete McCann)/ I Knew Right Away (with Steve Cardenas)/ Song for Steve Swallow (with Steve Swallow, b)/ Winter Solstice (with Ben Monder)/ I’m Still Asking the Question (with Steve Swallow, b) Black Mountain Breakdown (with David Gilmore)/ Reflections in D/ America the Beautiful; 64:46. agsrecordings.bandcamp.com
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