3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
JAZZY, August 23, 2000
This review is from: Swing West! Vol. 2: Guitar Slingers (Audio CD)
O.K. The reason this album garnered 5 stars is because I am a beginner to country music and was absolutely knocked flat by what I heard. If you are a seasoned western swing fan than you would probably want albums by the individual artists. I will want them too, but this cd is a wonderful place to start. I come from a jazz background so the title and the whole genre of "Western Swing" caught my ear. These guys could give any of our fine jazz guitarists a run for their money. Jimmy Bryant, Speedy West, it's all wonderful. It's just a different way to play jazz! There was a time not so long ago when jazz, blues, country, and pop were not such worlds apart. Listen to "Caravan" and feel the jazz sensibility. If only there were more finely skilled musicians making instrumental music in areas outside of jazz and classical today. Pick it up, it will broaden your horizons.
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2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Hot instros zig-zag from blues to jazz to country swing, August 9, 1999
This review is from: Swing West! Vol. 2: Guitar Slingers (Audio CD)
While Buck Owens, Merle Haggard and Dwight Yoakam have the most famous names, California's been the adopted home of innovative country artists since the dustbowl drove Okies west. From the honky-tonks of Bakersfield, to the guitar pyrotechnics of Speedy West and Joe Maphis, to the vibrant swing scene of 1940s Los Angeles, California often led Nashville with new instrumentation, musical composites and lyrical ideas. Though far from definitive - it's only 3 CDs, after all - this set provides a superb introduction to the many facets of West Coast country.
Volume 2 collects instrumentals from guitarists Jimmy Bryant, Merle Travis, James Burton, and others. The players zig-zag from country to blues to swing to jazz, from steel to acoustic to electric to 12-string, stacking one virtuoso performance on top of another. Roy Clark and Glen Campbell demonstrate the instrumental prowess that would soon be eclipsed by TV fame.
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