Wireless set
Audiophiles
who appreciate variety and musicianship should make space on their shelves for
this eclectic and deeply satisfying CD.
Deane, a Dublin-born guitarist, has
been kicking around as a session player and sometime frontman since the 1960s,
so he must be pushing 70. Still, his musical intelligence ranges over a variety
of styles: every cut on this album feels fresh and innovative. And Deane’s
voice somehow sounds like that of a teenager.
Some of the cuts have a carefree,
radio-friendly feel. Deane’s age notwithstanding, I Need a Holiday, written by
Dan Penn and Chuck Prophet, should be a hit today – people should blast it out
as they cruise in their convertibles with the tops down. Just feel-good stuff.
The blues are here, too, in the form of covers of Muddy Waters’ I Can’t Be
Satisfied and Taj Mahal’s Queen Bee.
Half of the 12 songs on the album are
instrumentals, and Deane’s impeccable musicianship shines – from tasty slide to
fluidly picked leads to wonderful chord changes. (He is, by the way, one of
those weirdos who plays the guitar left-handed and upside-down – weirdos whose
number also included the great guitarist Albert King.)
It’s For You, with its
flamenco feel, was influenced, Dean says, both by Robert Johnson and Francisco
Tarrega, a Spanish classical guitarist and composer who died more than a
century ago.
And Nick Lowe, with whom Deane toured in the 1990s, probably influenced
the opening cut, Vampire. Harlem Nocturne, sounds bluesy but eerie.
And Deane
describes the mellow closing track, an instrumental in which his relaxed yet
emotive guitar ranges over a rich backdrop of instruments, as “the nearest I’ve
managed to get to playing with a string orchestra.”
Always impeccable, always
fresh, always innovative, this is a CD you’ll return to over the years. This
one will stand the test of time.
M.D. Spenser
