Good Dog Happy Man

Bill Frisell | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (May 18, 1999)
• Original Release Date: May 18, 1999
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Nonesuch
• ASIN: B00000IXTW
• Also Available in: Audio CD  |  Vinyl  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (40 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #34,103 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

The live-simple equation reached in the title of Good Dog, Happy Man might lull the listener into believing that Bill Frisell's continuing vamp on his Nashville band is reaching for the quaintest sounds possible. But in truth, this mellow-opening recording is as reaching and full of yearning as any of the guitar great's other releases. He draws in the full-on bluegrass sound of Nashville with the more rock-hard crunch of that redoubtable effort's successor, Gone, Just Like a Train, which debuted longtime session drummer Jim Keltner as an ideal foil for Frisell's squishy guitar end runs around flashiness. Keltner's back on board, as is bassist Viktor Krauss (who began his Frisellian foray on Nashville), but the band has grown to include Wayne Horvitz on Hammond B-3 for several steamy tracks, Greg Leisz on steel guitar and mandolin, and Billy Cox on second six-string guitar. Frisell marks each tune with a uniquely decentered stamp, giving off a comfortable aura for new listeners and sneaking in gobs of weird twists and phrases. In addition, he samples in layers of squiggles in spots, making Dog sound like an ageless pop gem as well as the boundary-busting bounty that it is. --Andrew Bartlett

From Jazziz

Guitarist Bill Frisell has bent the rules of jazz guitar - or of any six-string tradition, for that matter - further than he could ever stretch an E string. His sonic identity has colored the work of a broad range of musicians during the past decade or so. And his own wide-ranging music has focused of late on themes that speak of distinctly American forms - not just jazz, but folk and country, too. Good Dog, Happy Man taps a well of Americana that many of Frisell's peers will continue to draw from - yet none will be able to duplicate his particular twang.

--- JAZZIZ Magazine Copyright © 2000, Milor Entertainment, Inc.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

24 of 24 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars It's not jazz...So What!!, January 4, 2005

By 

DC from TX (Round Rock, Texas USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Good Dog Happy Man (Audio CD)

I had to post this in response to the knucklehead that posted the "this guy's is a charlatan" review below. I am not a huge Frisell fan by any means, but the guy definitely has his own style, which is a lot more than I can say for most 'jazz' guitarists, who all play the same cliched licks they learned from their teachers at Berklee, GIT, or wherever they went to 'jazz school', with the same old cliched 'jazz guitar' tone that they all use. I am a guitarist myself (20 years+). I love all kinds of guitar playing, including jazz guitar, but I HATE snobby jazz guitarists that think if it aint blowing lightning quick bop runs over complicated chord changes, then it aint jazz and it sucks. I think Miles disproved that years ago, thank God. It's not all about how many notes you can play, despite what some swell headed jazz guy may think.


Anyway, this is a nice atmospheric and laid back album. Delay, looping and subtle 'whammy bar' bends give Frisell's guitar an otherworldy sound, while acoustic instruments bring it back down to Earth. Is it jazz? No, so what???? It's heartfelt music, it's what comes out of Frisell's soul. He's not trying to make music to impress YOU, jazz guitar guy.

Sorry for the rant, but snobby musicians really tee me off...

32 of 35 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Do you like swimming underwater?, October 11, 2000

By 

Bruce C. Moore (Seattle, WA United States) - See all my reviews
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Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Good Dog Happy Man (Audio CD)

Most folks who can swim stay on the surface. Those who have discovered the joy of escaping gravity, and the freedom of breathing to a different beat, find a blissful release in getting beneath it all. If there were speakers in Hanalei Bay, this is what I would play.

Every time I listen to one of Bill's albums I want to share it with a friend. I'm always tempted, but I avoid the thought, "this is my favorite." I'm not comfortable with the whole notion of 'favorite' because it implies I can't enjoy anything else quite as much. But, as I'm listening this evening, boy am I tempted to give in.

So, what's so special about this one? It's loaded with the accessible essence of his music...the ability to push simplicity beyond elegance, and to reach a musical sensibility that is majestic and moving. You get a hint of his ability to deconstruct a melody without having to resolve what was once familiar. You delight to his fleeting references to the familiar without loosing touch with the gentle tension of discovery. You are bouyed by his chameleon like ability to fuse with his ensemble of stellar session players, ever changing and ever excellent.

So friend, I want to share this album with you. And I trust you will want to share it with a friend, as well. Dive in, the water's fine. No suit required.

22 of 24 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Nice Guitar Playing...But a Little Too Laid Back, January 14, 2000

By 

Steve Vrana (Aurora, NE) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Good Dog Happy Man (Audio CD)

This is my first exposure to the world of Bill Frisell. From what I've read he's a musician of many hats: from jazz to rock to country. On this outing he very definitely mines a country groove.

Frisell is an accomplished guitarist, but there's nothing flashy about his playing. Rather than trying to dazzle the listener with lightning-fast fretwork, he invokes a style reminiscent of Ry Cooder on a 12-song set of mid-tempo songs. [In fact, Ry Cooder guests on the traditional "Shenandoah"--the only track on the album not a Frisell original.]

Throughout the album Frisell's guitar is augmented by session drummer extraordinaire Jim Keltner, bassist Viktor Krauss, keyboardist Wayne Horvitz and Greg Leisz on pedal steel, Dobro and mandolin.

This recording session has a laid-back, impromptu feel to it and the playing is impeccable. However, while this makes for enjoyable listening, it also makes you wish that maybe once or twice they'd kick things into high gear. As it is, it makes for pleasant enough background music, but doesn't necessarily encourage repeated listenings.