Tony Rice Sings Gordon Lightfoot

                                                                            

For those unaware of who Tony Rice was, he was one of the most accomplished acoustic guitar players on the planet. He was greatly admired by his peers, and during his lengthy career he performed primarily as a Bluegrass artist, although his musical talents defied any type of categorization. 

One of my favourite recordings of his was his tribute to Gordon Lightfoot. Unlike most albums of this nature, the 17 tracks on this disc were culled from various recording sessions that Tony was involved in. In the liner notes Tony recalls his time with J. D. Crowe and the New South in the mid 1970's and the initial decision to cover one of Gordon's songs. That particular band was noted for its approach to bluegrass, and has been recognized as a revolutionary force in the "newgrass" movement as well as influencing mainstream country as well. According to Tony, the band was looking for material that would be different than the standard fare, and "it was when J.D. Crowe, Ricky Skaggs and I were together that the first Lightfoot tune happened. We did ""Ten Degrees and Getting Colder"". 

All of the songs included in this collection were recorded with intricate attention to detail. The acoustic instruments allow the listener to hear Gordon's songs performed with great care and attention, and with space and depth that allows the beauty of the melody and harmony to be front and centre. There are no lush string arrangements, orchestrations and vocal overdubs to crowd out the performance of the musicians.   

Tony Rice has gone on record as stating that Gordon Lightfoot was his favourite songwriter, and his appreciation for Gordon's talents is borne out by the reverence and interpretation of his songs on this recording. They never worked together, but had met, and as Tony puts it, "We've hung out a few times, had a good time". Perhaps the succinct and respectful acknowledgement comes from a quote from Gordon himself, as printed on the back of the disc. "...fantastic contemporary bluegrass renditions of these songs...the musicianship on the collection is marvellous, getting into some high profile instrumental work. Thank you, Tony". High praise indeed.