Stars in My Crown

Jorma Kaukonen

Product Details

• Audio CD (March 13, 2007)
• Original Release Date: March 13, 2007
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Red House
• ASIN: B000MM1F3M
• In-Print Editions: MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars See all reviews (19 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #20,689 in Music (See Bestsellers in Music)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com
Five years after Blue Country Heart, Stars in My Crown finds Jorma Kaukonen continuing and expanding on that Grammy-nominated work. It's again a relaxed setting, but the stylistic range has taken on a compelling diversity. Not generally a prolific writer, Kaukonen has written a welcome five of the disc's fourteen numbers this time out. They range from the perfect and prayerful opener "Overture: Heart Temporary," with its 12-piece string section holding his acoustic guitar and vocal aloft, to the lilting instrumental "A Life Well Lived." Kaukonen's choice of covers has left him room to make them his own, while also adding to the portrait of who he is as an artist, and how he got there. It would be right to expect a Rev. Gary Davis song on this album, and there are two of them, but it's his take on Johnny Cash's "The Man Comes Around" that amazes. It's an audacious choice for reinterpretation in which he both honors the original and finds a natural ease for his own voice. Throughout the entire set, the small and subtly varying ensemble plays with elegant style, peppered with occasional playful hijinks. --David Greenberger

Product Description
The Rock & Roll Hall of Fame-enshrined guitarist and founder of Jefferson Airplane and Hot Tuna returns with a stunning acoustic masterpiece, his first new recording since 2002's Grammy-nominated Blue Country Heart.

Continuing the journey through American roots music he started in the early 1960's, Jorma cooks up a tasty collection of down-home blues, bluegrass, folk, country gospel and reggae. Stars In My Crown was recorded in Nashville and is rooted in classic Americana, flavored with a laid-back bluesy feel.

With fresh takes on soul-searching spirituals and many original compositions, the new record is vastly more personal than previous recordings, as evidenced by the self-penned "Heart Temporary," "A Life Well Lived," and "Living In The Moment." The album reveals Kaukonen's increasingly reflective outlook as the success of his Fur Peace Guitar Ranch and his full and varied life of music and family leads him to ask on the liner notes "Who would have thought that life would be this good?"

Jorma's love for Lightnin' Hopkins manifests in "Come Back Baby," and his continued channeling of Reverend Gary Davis is heard in "There's A Table Sitting In Heaven." A satisfying jewel is Jorma's cover of the classic reggae song "The Rivers Of Babylon." After Jerry Garcia gave him his first reggae album - the soundtrack to the movie The Harder They Come - Kaukonen always wanted to record the tune. "This is crucial reggae for sure," says Jorma.

Backing Kaukonen are the outstanding talents of Barry Mitterhoff (Hot Tuna), Rob Ickes (Blue Highway), Reese Wynans (Stevie Ray Vaughan's Double Trouble), Tim Stafford (Blue Highway, Alison Krauss), Greg Leisz (Dave Alvin) and Sally Van Meter (Tony Furtado Band). Produced by Byron House (Sam Bush Band), Stars in My Crown is the album that fans and critics have been anxiously awaiting.

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

23 of 25 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars "Who would have thought that life would be this good?", March 16, 2007

By	Mike (San Jose, CA) - See all my reviews (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)

The title of my review is from Jorma's liner notes to "Stars In My Crown." He talks about "living a simple life with my music" and as a fan of the man and his music for the last 40 years, I've got to say I've never heard him more relaxed and natural. Remember the albums he did for Relix Records like "Too Hot To Handle?" Jorma was still dancing with a few of his demons then, and it showed (as did the fact that Relix was the ultimate low-rent, low budget label). Fans of acoustic Hot Tuna will enjoy Lightning Hopkins' "Come Back Baby," and the opener "Heart Temporary," a Jorma original, perfectly captures the "bittersweet and beautiful but never sugary" tone of his best work. "Late Breaking News" is more "Burgers"-era Jorma, while The Rev. Gary Davis' "There's A Table Sitting In Heaven" will take you back in spirit to Jorma's earlier Rev. G.D. tune "I Am The Light Of This World." Think of "Stars In My Crown" as a postcard from an old and treasured friend. The fact that Jorma's happy and still making heartfelt, vital music at age 66 is reason to celebrate.

19 of 21 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Hits the Bullseye, April 1, 2007

By	Richard G. Jerskey "Rich G Jerskey" (Main Camp) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

I've been a big fan since the days of seeing the Airplane and Hot Tuna play at the Filmore East on several occaisions. Jorma's style of guitar playing as well as his songwriting has inspired me since then. Songs like "Mann's Fate", "Third Week in the Chelsea", "Been So long" etc.have been personal favorites over the years. Even though the vast majority of offerings have been quite good I always thought that he hadn't really consistently hit his personal artistic bullseye. Of course I understand if anyone including Mr. K. would just say B.S. at this. (Hey, it's my humble opinion.) However, this recording mos definitely hits that bullseye and just made me stop what it was that I was doing while listening and take serious note. ... YEAH!, this is it...
The Johnny Cash gem "When The Man Comes Around" is well done (maybe not as good as JC but very good nonetheless). There's some old standards too like "Come Back Baby" with a new life injected into it. There are some really choice originals such as "A Life Well Lived," and "Living In The Moment" (and others) that are amoung the best things on the album. There's "Rivers of Babylon" which gets covered an awful lot it seems but this is one of the better attempts. All in all the CD is excellent and extremely listenable with very well done instrumentation, arrangement and production. The package itself and liner notes by Jorma make it worth not just downloading the mp3. I don't much like writing these reviews anymore but this one stands up above the crowd and deserves praise. I think it's a downright winner.
Thanks Jorma!! Keep on makin them like this.

17 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Jorma Kaukonen - Stars in My Crown, A True Gem!, March 13, 2007

By	Edje "Live your light" (Milford, CT) - See all my reviews

Jorma has cultivated a time honored set of personal spiritual tunes that are uniquely reflective and reverent. His guitar mastery fosters renewed interpretation of old time blues classics as well as leads us to new revelations. I loved how Jorma crafted the tribute to American country blues heritage on his previous recording, Blue Country Heart. The tradition is furthered happily with Stars in My Crown. We are gifted to Jorma's keen jeweler's eye as each track becomes a fine cut diamond. Jorma carves out for the listener an instinctual sound that enlists our trust by building a mutual affinity.

Jorma's maturity as an artist combines intuitive depth with focused simplicity. There are several enchanting new songs to engage you such as Late Breaking News and Heart Temporary. I have yearned to hear Jorma Kaukonen to record more Rev. Gary Davis songs. He appeases that need by including two of his songs on the CD, There's a Table Sitting in Heaven and Will There Be Any Stars in My Crown. Another new song, Living In The Moment places us on the Fur Peace Ranch back porch rocking alongside Jorma in our easy chair.

Jorma, thank you for an insightful series of spiritual tunes that deepens our awareness and embellishes the music of our heart and souls!