Albert Lee
For some guitarists, being able to play a lot of notes in a short amount of time is an end in itself, but that bears about as much relation to music as being able to say 20 terrible tongue-twisters 10 times fast does to singing. Now, nobody is likely to top Lee in the flying fingers department. But far more to the point, he never loses his sense of melody, as this often extraordinary instrumental album again shows. The music ranges from the raucous Al Casey/Duane Eddy romp Forty Miles of Bad Road, with Lee on acoustic guitar and producer Jim Cox on harpsichord, to Fritz Kreisler's meditation Schön Rosmarin, originally written for violin (in this case Cox adds his keyboards to Lee's guitar). For variety there's a five-piece sax section to enliven Don't Let Go, a Lee piano solo on his own moody Monte Nido and a spiffy rendition of the Chet Atkins/Boudleaux Bryant standby Country Gentleman. Put this one on the shelf for the records that set standards of excellence. (MCA)
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