Customer Reviews

Regards From Chuck Pink

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
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This CD has done the impossible. It made me realize that Kottke's best stuff was not done in the early days. This album is a MASTERPIECE of acoustic playing. It ranges from thumping percussive 12-string pieces like "Skinflint" to the intricate reprise of "Ojo" from the Tacoma album to the funky and bizarre "I Yell at Traffic."
If you have been a Kottke fan from the early days of the great "Mudlark" and "Greenhouse" albums, you're in for a wonderful surprise. "Chuck Pink" illustrates perfectly how a great artist explores new territority and yet retains his unmistakeable signature style. I can't stop playing this CD. It's rare that a week goes by when I don't play it 3 or 4 times in a row. I keep a copy in my car and play it over and over on road trips and never hear a complaint from my wife, but she thinks Leo is "cute." I love it and I think any guitar afficianado will too. Buy it, you won't be sorry. I've got 13 or 14 Kottke albums and this one is currently at the top of my list. BTW, I've been a regular at Leo's concerts for many years and have never been disappointed. Big John and Little Sparky rule! Leo knows what I'm talking about.

VERY ODD that I'm the first to submit a review of this beauty. Plain and simple, it is a masterpiece. Mr Kottke could have released just this one album and safely secured a Warrior's Welcome in Valhalla. I repeat: MASTERPIECE. Buy it and make up yr own review. No words for the ineffable. Sublime. Heavenly. A 'Gift.'

I'm not quite sure who Chuck Pink is in real life. The liner notes, however, leave little doubt that Kottke views him as the archetypal nemesis - author of the countless irritations that frustrate the living and bedevil the world. The god of all false notes, if you will. The good news is that, while he appears in the title, the evil influence of the ephemeral Mr. Pink is entirely absent from this album. Instead, it is a classic example of what I think is remarkable about Leo Kottke.

Kottke's style, which has many folk and blues roots has a certain muscularity that is often lacking in guitar solo work. It isn't that I prefer one way of playing to another, but it lends Kottke's work a level of strength that can be compelling. Even in his quieter pieces ('Dan's Tune,' for example) he attacks the strings with an assured and precise confidence. For the most part, though, Kottke's music is lively, humorous, and unaffected.

This album is notable for the ensemble nature of the songs chosen, and the somewhat eclectic nature of the instruments - strings, guitars, rhythm, and the delicate appearance of several electronic instruments. Kottke works well in this kind of playing, giving George Doering (electric guitar) and Benton Banks (violin) and equal part in the music playing.

Over all, the album has a kind of 'retrofunk' flavor - many of the treatments seem to come straight out of the 1920's. that, coupled with the brash humor that Kottke often displays in his subjects ('I Yell At Traffic' and 'Skinflint') give the resulting album a flavor that is both old and contemporary at the same time. A good album for those times when you need a bit of a lift.

I've heard about 10 or 12 Leo Kottke albums, and this is the best of all of them. I like some of his odd vocals, and none of those appear here, but this is still a great album because the songs and arrangements are better than what you'll find on the average Kottke release. Everything clicked on this recording. Part of what makes this program so appealing is the variety of styles. It keeps the listener from getting bored. There are some slow bluesy numbers (Late Zone) with thoughtful sentimental melodies (Ojo) to break up the frenetic fingerpicking of Taxco Steps and others.

Honestly, I find some of Leo Kottke's work pretty tuneless and pointless, but almost everything here is very good to excellent. If you like Leo's style of solo guitar, the songs on Chuck Pink are the best examples you will find.

Fans tend to give Kottke's Private Music years little attention, instead focusing on his his lone Takoma and subsequent Capitol releases. Those who do this, miss out on some wonderful guitar playing. Regards from Chuck Pink features some of Kottke's unique style of finger-picking. And while this is an all-instrumental affair, Kottke works with other musicians on many tracks, including George Doering on electric guitar ("The Late Zone" and "Busy Signal"), Brenton Banks on violin ("I Yell at Traffic") and even electronic woodwind provided by Marty Krystall on "Foster's Feet." Kottke also includes an understated solo reworking of "Ojo" from Six-and-12-String Guitar. Overall, fans of Kottke's guitar work will find much to enjoy here. RECOMMENDED

This multi-part review can be found on each of these product pages:

1) A Shout Toward Noon (1987)
2) Regards From Chuck Pink (1988)
3) My Father's Face (1989)
4) That's What (1990)
5) Great Big Boy (1992)
6) Peculiaroso (1994)
7) Standing In My Shoes (1997)
8) One Guitar, No Vocals (1999)

Part Two: Regards From Chuck Pink

(This title comes from the name of a piece played on Leo's 1975 release "Chewing Pine", but longtime Kottke fans know it as "Egg Tooth". Why the two titles, I don't know. "Chuck Pink" was played in ensemble while "Egg Tooth" has always appeared as a solo piece, maybe that's it.)

Anyway: we are now examining Kottke's 1988 release for Private Music. "Regards From Chuck Pink" (hence referred to as "Chuck") seems to revisit some of the same ground that A Shout Toward Noon did, although the overall mood of this album is much sunnier. This album definitely challenges the listener more than its predecessor. And I'm happy to report that Buell Neidlinger's contributions are (mostly) positive this time around.

I Yell at Traffic - Here I must admit to a shifting attitude toward this recording, even after all these years. On the one hand, the additional instruments (especially Benton Banks' violin work) create an interesting sound, making it a completely different, but good in its' own right, piece from Leo's typically solo 12-string treatment. On the other hand, the title of this piece REQUIRES anger, frankly. And for that reason, Leo should have insisted on a solo 12-string recording. Of course, the final judgment belongs to you.

Foster's Feet - would have been right at home on the previous album, especially with the spooky synth thrown in. It's a really good piece.

Dan's Tune - Dan must have been a bright-eyed optimist, judging from the happy brightness of this piece. I have yet to hear a solo version of this one, so listen closely through the synth and electric guitar - which, if I read my CD insert correctly, was played by Leo. This is an even more rare development than Leo on nylon string guitar!

Skinflint - Once again, Leo Kottke conjures up a slide guitar piece you wish you had thought of. A bright, uptempo little romp with appropriate production. For me it's on a short list of Leo's best slide pieces.

Pink Christmas - Another kind-of title track from Leo, Pink Christmas is a bauble of elegance. Doesn't sound much like Christmas (or like pink, for that matter), but it's beautiful.

Short Wave - For some reason, this piece has never done much for me. It's a catchy little number in Open D tuning with a fun tempo (and the production works here), but I get nothing from it. Even the solo version doesn't get me.

Dog Quiver - and back into the darkness we go. If it is possible for an instrumental piece with a funny name to give you nightmares, this one will.

Busy Signal - this is a kind of stream-of-consciousness piece. There's no discernable melody here - it just seems like a bit of a jam piece, albeit a one-sided one. It works, it's a good one, with George Doering's electric licks taking the lead, but otherwise it comes off as a little pointless. Maybe your reaction will be different.

Theme From "Doodles" - I still don't know what Doodles is, but if you liked Dan's Tune, you will like this piece less. It's still pretty good, though.

The Late Zone - I would have preferred less production here, although it works in some respects. This slow shuffle could be described as Happy Trails meets Wonderland by Night meets REM sleep. I like it, though it may not be for everybody.

Taxco Steps - There is just a little bit of production on this piece, and it is ruinous. You won't realize it as such until you have seen Leo Kottke play this incredible, fast-paced spectacle in a solo setting, but once you have you will be angry that Taxco Steps got mutilated in this way.

Ojo - Leo's only dip into the archive on Chuck, Leo improves the older version greatly with this version. Gone is the breakneck bull-in-a-china-shop speed, and in its place is a still vigorous but much more artistic treatment of the same melody, with a new venture into a minor key. Leo once said he was very pleased with this modulation, and I have to agree. It adds so much to an already good piece.

Mary - Mary is to Pink Christmas as Theme From "Doodles" is to Dan's Tune, though Mary is not as inferior to its counterpart as Theme From "Doodles" is to Dan's Tune. (I hope that made sense) You may recognize the main theme in Mary as a motif from The Ice Field (from A Shout Toward Noon), though Mary is much more elegant and uplifting. The strings are letter-perfect here.

I suppose A Shout Toward Noon probably works better as a whole album, but there's more new original material here and the mood of the album jumps around. It's hard to go wrong with either one. Highly recommended.