One Guitar, No Vocals

One Guitar, No Vocals

Editorial Reviews
Amazon.com
Leo Kottke was initially inspired by fellow southern blues and country masters such as Mississippi John Hurt, Chet Atkins, and Roy Clark. As a young artist, Leo Kottke recorded for John Fahey's legendary Takoma label--garnering sometimes unfair comparisons to that gentle giant of guitar hoo-doo. Subsequently, pickers from Ry Cooder to Jim O'Rourke have been influenced by the work of these elder brothers who laid the groundwork for the atmospheric, improvisational noodling that's sometimes called chamber-folk. Following along these lines, Kottke displays his heritage proudly on the simple yet remarkably nimble One Guitar, No Vocals. "Three Quarter North" is a bluesy, deliciously sloppy waltz interspersed with broken bits of phrasing like the easy, mumbled drawl of front-porch conversation, while the album's longest piece, "Accordian Bells," rises and falls, tinkles and plays like tiny tip-toe dancing. --Paige La Grone

One Guitar, No Vocals,Leo Kottke,Private Music,Folk,Folk & Traditional,Pop,Popular Music,Urban

Average customer rating:

Best example of Kottke's mature playing style

Just One Guitar?

True musical genius

leo kottke's guitar music is a gift to the world

If you like to write instrumental guitar...

One Guitar, No Vocals
Leo Kottke
Manufacturer: RCA Victor
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Contemporary Folk | Folk | Styles | Music
General | Folk | Styles | Music
Traditional Folk | Folk | Styles | Music
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ASIN: B00000JG4I
Release Date: 1999-06-29

Tracks:

Snorkel
Morning Is the Long Way Home
Too Fast
Three/Quarter North
Retrograde
Chamber of Commerce
From "Little Treasure"
Bigger Situation
Accordion Bells
Peckerwood
Blimp
Even His Feet Look Sad

Amazon.com

Leo Kottke was initially inspired by fellow southern blues and country masters such as Mississippi John Hurt, Chet Atkins, and Roy Clark. As a young artist, Leo Kottke recorded for John Fahey's legendary Takoma label--garnering sometimes unfair comparisons to that gentle giant of guitar hoo-doo. Subsequently, pickers from Ry Cooder to Jim O'Rourke have been influenced by the work of these elder brothers who laid the groundwork for the atmospheric, improvisational noodling that's sometimes called chamber-folk. Following along these lines, Kottke displays his heritage proudly on the simple yet remarkably nimble One Guitar, No Vocals. "Three Quarter North" is a bluesy, deliciously sloppy waltz interspersed with broken bits of phrasing like the easy, mumbled drawl of front-porch conversation, while the album's longest piece, "Accordian Bells," rises and falls, tinkles and plays like tiny tip-toe dancing. --Paige La Grone

Customer Reviews:

Best example of Kottke's mature playing style.......2006-08-20

If you see Kottke perform today, like his style, and want to pick up one of his discs, 'One Guitar, No Vocals' is a good start for your Kottke collection.

After being laid low with chronic tendonitis in the mid-80's, I didn't think Leo would ever approach the level of playing he had on his Takoma debut, `6 and 12 String Guitar' (see my review).

`One Guitar, No Vocals' was a real surprise. I rank this and `Standing in My Shoes' as the best of his recordings in the last ten or so years.

On `6&12 String', he blew you away with speed and power, a falling-down-the-hill-head-over-heels kind of sound. On `OGNV'. Leo reinvented his style of playing. It may be a slower, more mature style, but he replaces the speed and power with finesse and intricate fingerpicking.

Each piece evokes a mood, whether it be a romantic walk in the woods on a cool autumn day (Three/Quarter North), whimsicality (Snorkel), instrumental storytelling (Morning is a Long way Home), or several versions of one melody(Accordion Bells).

Veteran Kottke fans will appreciate Leo's `riff recycling', a thing he typically does in his music. In `Snorkel` a bit of `Mona Ray' (Dreams and All that Stuff )leaks in. Leo gives us a new acoustic version of `Morning is a Long Way Home' (`Ice Water'). I even think I might have heard a bit of `Monkey Lust' (`Mudlark') drifting through `Too Fast'.

Just One Guitar?.......2006-02-02

Obviously, there are no vocals on this album but the sounds that Kottke can make come out of a single guitar is truly amazing. I am not a guitar player and I don't know if he employs many technical tricks with effects and such, but he really seems to master the instrument.

I don't own any other Kottke albums but when I heard this one, I had to get it. The themes in the music are fully fleshed out in each song, giving each one a unique personality. It fits many moods and even without the vocals, it does seem like the songs are saying something, much like a classical or jazz piece. And it also works whether you want to listen to it all the way through or mix it in with other music on a shuffle.

I definitely keep an ear open for other Kottke music because of this album.

True musical genius.......2005-07-28

Morning is the Long Way Home and Too Fast; dazzling, amazing in performance and structure, but the tune Bigger Situation; what can you say about this stunning composition. As deep and powerfully brilliant as anything the human race has to offer. Leo Kottke, a musical artistic immortal.

leo kottke's guitar music is a gift to the world.......2005-04-24

Leo Kottke is a national treasure. He is our greatest living solo acoustic guitar virtuoso. Having said that, you'd expect his CDs to be at a very high level of brilliance. I have at least a dozen of his titles. If there is any trouble in deciding the merits of any one disc, it's because there are so many Kottke releases to choose from.

"One Guitar, No Vocals" clearly ranks as one of the best. The compositions tickle my brain, warm my heart, and put a bounce into my step. The guitar playing is dazzling. You really get a glimpse of the man behind the guitar by listening to this music - brilliant, thoughtful, odd, complex, quirky, a huge heart, and the wackiest sense of humor. It's spirited music, so thoroughly drenched in the personality of its creator that it's unmistakably and immediately recognizable as Leo.

The world is full of acoustic guitar instrumentalists these days. Some of them are quite excellent. Many are not. But there is only one Leo Kottke. And his guitar music is a gift to the world.

A very strong recommendation for this CD.

If you like to write instrumental guitar..........2004-02-10

...youll love this. Ive been a Kottke fan for about 5 years now. I have a few of his albums and this one seems to be the most mature. Unique approach to writing and playing. Not for the musically faint of heart, he tends to go off on musical rants...but thats a main reason WHY i like him.

Tracks:

A Soft Day - Bernadette Greevy
Irish Skies - Bernadette Greevy
Cherry Ripe - Janice Watson
Mustard And Cress - Neal Davies
The Lily Of A Day - Janice Watson
Henry King - Neal Davies
Fain Would I Change That Note - Graham Johnson
In Summer-Time On Bredon - Christopher Maltman
The Lads In Their Hundreds - Christopher Maltman
Among The Rocks - Graham Johnson
It Was A Lover And His Lass - Anthony Rolfe Johnson
The Water Mill - Anthony Rolfe Johnson
On Wenlock Edge - Anthony Rolfe Johnson
The Call - Graham Johnson
Silent Noon - Graham Johnson
Now In These Fairylands - Philip Langridge
The Dream-City - Philip Langridge
Margrete's Cradle Song - Susan Gritton
The Heart Worships - Christopher Maltman
Take, O Those Lips Away - Anthony Rolfe Johnson
Now Sleeps The Crimson Petal - Graham Johnson
Love Calls Through The Summer Night - Anthony Rolfe Johnson
I Will Go With My Father A-Ploughing - Graham Johnson
The Rio Grande (Capstan Shanty) - Ian Partridge
Theodore, Or The Pirate King - Ian Partridge
A Long Time Ago (Hilliard's Shanty) - Ian Partridge
Oh Dear, What Can The Matter Be? - Bernadette Greevy

Tracks:

The Grenadier - Richard Edgar-Wilson
The Young Lover - Richard Edgar-Wilson
Betty And Johnny - Richard Edgar-Wilson
Rise Up And Reach The Stars - Richard Edgar-Wilson
The Bells - Nik Hancock-Child
Ann's Cradle Song - Nik Hancock-Child
As I Lay In The Early Sun - Nik Hancock-Child
The Cherry Tree - Nik Hancock-Child
Dusk - Nik Hancock-Child
Peter Warlock's Fancy - John Constable
The Frostbound Wood - John Constable
Chopcherry - John Constable
A Sad Song - John Constable
Rutterkin - John Constable
Bethlehem Down - John Constable
Wapping Old Stairs - Felicity Lott
Long Steel Grass - Martyn Hill
Tango-Pasodoble - Martyn Hill
Popular Song - Martyn Hill
Beatriz's Song - Felicity Lott
Lay Your Sleeping Head, My Love - Philip Langridge
Early One Morning - Felicity Lott
The Foggy, Foggy View - Philip Langridge
Now The Leaves Are Falling Fast - Philip Langridge
Tell Me The Truth About Love - Della Jones
The Choirmaster's Burial - Philip Langridge

Customer Reviews:

A century of British art songs to delight those who love them.......2006-06-26

These 53 songs have been collected by Naxos from their extensive acquisitions from Collins Classics, and perhaps other British sources now out of business. There's a steady cottage industry, year after year, producing the typical English art song, which is usually based on folk songs, but even in more modern idioms is profuondly conservative and nostaligic. Half these songs, not to mention half the composers, are totally unknown to American audiences, but the familiar names of Vaughan Williams and Britten represent high quality, and the lesser lights, such as Warlock and Quilter, are mainstays in this repertoire.

I'd challenge all but the most addicted listener to make it through more than ten songs at a sitting, and many of these pieces are tepid, offering comfort rather than inspiration. The singers are among the best, but Graham Johnson and Steuart Beford, who do most of the accompaniments, are lackluster. I know that won't be a popular comment, yet if you compare any of these songs with rendiitons done by Janet Baker, John Shirley-quirk, and most recently Bryn Terfel and Ian Bostridge, you immediately notice how much more intensity and drama is pesent than htis colleciton reveals.

Retrospective: The 40th Anniversary Show

Average customer rating:

Retrospective: The 40th Anniversary Show

Manufacturer: Primarily Acapella
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

Improvisation | Forms & Genres | Classical | Styles | Music

Suites | Forms & Genres | Classical | Styles | Music

General | Classical | Styles | Music

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Vocal Jazz General | Vocal Jazz | Jazz | Styles | Music

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General | Pop | Styles | Music

General | Oldies | Pop | Styles | Music

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Classic | Vocal Pop | Pop | Styles | Music

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ASIN: B00067HPD2
Release Date: 2004-11-16

Tracks:

Fugue in D Minor from 'The Art of Fugue BWV 1080
Air from Orchestral Suite No. 3 in D Major BWV 1068
Largo from Harpsichord Concerto in F Minor BWV 1056
Badinerie from Orchestral Suite No. 2 in B Minor BWV 1067
Announcement
Eine Kleine Nachtmusik Op. K. 525: Allegro
Eine Kleine Nachtmusik Op. K. 525: Romanze
Eine Kleine Nachtmusik Op. K. 525: Menuetto
Eine Kleine Nachtmusik Op. K. 525: Rondo
Announcement
En Aranjuez Con Tu Amor Based on MVT. 2 of 'Concierto de Aranjuez'
Tangho in D Major No. 2 from 'EspaOp. 165
Romanza Espa
Announcement
Just One of Those Things
Fascinatin' Rhythm
Announcement
Sinfonia from Partita No. 2 in C Minor BWV 826
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Solfeggietto WQ. 117/2
Duner Sur l'Herbe

Average customer rating:

Relaxing Melodies and More -- from Liona Boyd

Passport to Serenity

Manufacturer: Moston Records
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

Preludes | Forms & Genres | Classical | Styles | Music

General | Classical | Styles | Music

General | Chamber Music | Classical | Styles | Music

General | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music
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ASIN: B00004TJ9D
Release Date: 2000-05-23

Tracks:

Lullaby For My Love
Son in a
Estudio in E
Adelita
The Girl With The Flaxen Hair
Gymnopedie No.1
Cantarell
Con in D: Adagio
Ser For A Summer's Evening
Eternal Moment
Arioso
Prld
Ser For Winter
Shadows Of The Wind
Habanera
Adagio

Customer Reviews:

Relaxing Melodies and More -- from Liona Boyd.......2001-06-06

Liona Boyd's talents as composer and performer are superbly demonstrated on this album. (Liona wrote seven out of the sixteen classical guitar pieces on Passport To Serenity). Liona's "Lullaby for My Love" and "Shadows of the Wind" are beautifully written and played. Listen to Liona's interpretation of Erik Satie's "Gymnopedie #1". I highly recommend this wonderful CD.