Aerial Boundaries

Michael Hedges

Product Details

• Audio CD (October 25, 1990)
• Original Release Date: 1985
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Windham Hill Records
• ASIN: B000000NFW
• Also Available in: Audio CD  |  Audio Cassette  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars See all reviews (50 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #9,651 in Music (See Bestsellers in Music)

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  #22 in	Music > New Age > Solo Instrumental
  #67 in	Music > Indie Music > New Age

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com essential recording
It's been called the album that opened "a new chapter on steel-string guitar playing," and it's unquestionably one of the most groundbreaking albums in acoustic guitar history. Though Hedges had released the excellent Breakfast in the Field on Windham Hill in 1981, the Grammy-nominated Boundaries came as an unexpected revelation in 1985. On stirring, complex compositions like "Rickover's Dream," "Spare Change," and a deft instrumental reading of Neil Young's "After the Gold Rush," Hedges unleashed a stunning new vocabulary of finger-tapping, hammering, and harmonic slaps--processed with electronics and reverb--that still resounds today in the playing of artists from Ani Di Franco to Preston Reed. Steeped both in classical harmony and the fingerstyle guitar tradition of Leo Kottke, Martin Carthy, and John Renbourn, Boundaries remains the late composer-guitarist's seminal work, and its innovations in technique, tuning, tone, and intensity remain key texts in modern acoustic circles. --James Rotondi

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

22 of 22 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars One of the cornerstones of modern acoustic guitar playing, July 14, 1998

By	"rootwitch" (Sao Paulo, SP BRAZIL) - See all my reviews

Anyone interested in discovering the massive changes in contemporary acoustic guitar playing perpetrated by just one man, this is the mandatory first step. Aerial Boundaries is, without doubt, the record that presented Michael Hedges to the world as the ultimate acoustic guitar visionary, stretching the limits of the instrument to accomodate his uncanny musical ideas. I was fortunate enough to meet him on various occasions, and to study with John Stropes, responsible for his transcription work. On such occasions, Hedges told me that, despite the fact that he felt the necessity of evolving his music, this was his most accurate attempt to revolutionize the way the acoustic guitar should sound. Without question, his best and most essential recording.

14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars I hate to add another five-star review, but. . ., March 6, 2000

By	Bryan Douglas (Midlothian, VA United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

The biggest problem with any Michael Hedges album is that few stereo systems will do his sound any justice. Hearing him perform live in close-quarters setting forever changed the way I listen to solo guitar. He was an eccentric and very entertaining performer, and his absence leaves an unfillable cavity. I'll never forget his much-improved version of Madonna's "Lucky Star" or him spinning around and around in a tight circle--a smoking cigarette stuck in the end of his guitar--dizzying the audience with his weird, wacky style and amazing talent. It would have been a cheap gimmick if almost anyone else had done this, but Hedges had the soul of a child who truly loved making music for our enjoyment.

Just listen to the sample tracks provided by Amazon and you'll know whether or not you "get" Michael Hedges. Master of fast finger techniques, his tracks lay down layer upon layer of musical complexity and every piece stretches the dynamic range of the instument. He can be seductively quiet and suddenly explosive. Slow or fast, timid or thunderous, Hedges' playing almost never bores you if you know how to listen. But active listening isn't required: This album won't punish or distract you if you just pop in this familiar CD for background music for other activities. A must-have for those who like alternative instrumental music.

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Acoustic Guitar....re-invented!, February 21, 1999

By A Customer

I first heard of Michael Hedges on a Windham Hill Sampler(1984, I think). Aerial Boundaries was the song, and I was immediately interested, enthralled, and hooked...I checked the albumn's liner notes about the song, as it clearly sounded like two guitars, or three, being played at once! I was sure it was overdubbed, but I was wrong. I went out and bought Aerial Boundaries, and it clearly says that it was 'recorded live' with no overdubs. Astounding! I was an instant fan of Hedges as a result of this albumn, and now own all of his available CD's/albumns. However, I was saddenned by his tragic passing in 1997. The world lost a master of the guitar. Hedges shines in Aerial Boundaries, one of his technically best albumns. Buy it!