US OPEN TENNIS

Nylon & Steel Classical guitar lovers looking for a jazzier change of pace shouldn’t be disappointed by Nylon & Steel, Manuel Barrueco’s album of duets with Al Di Meola, Steve Morse, and Andy Summers. But ironically enough, it’s the two solo tunes that bookend this disc, Barrueco’s “Odeon” and his solo guitar arrangement of Aaron Copland’s “Rodeo,” that are the real highlights. His three cuts with Di Meola are a mixed affair, but the interplay between the duo seems to gel on the longer “Azzurra.” Steve Morse’s electric guitar is loaded with Bill Frisell-like effects, but on “Wolvesville,” he and Barrueco create an inspired and unleashed fusion between rock and classical music (the inspiration for the piece is a Villa-Lobos tude). Three mellow collaborations with Summers round out this set of intriguing guitar instrumentals. –Jason Verlinde
Customer Review: An Oasis of quality music.
The tracks on this recording vary from exuberant latin-american jazz - like ‘Beyond The Mirage’- to more introspective music like ‘The Grand Passion’. ‘Northern Lights’is very sensitive as well, it makes you a little bit melancholic. Between all the noisy dance-music we have nowadays, ‘Nylon & Steel’is an oasis of quality and high standard.(Though there is no classical music played on this cd - apart from Villa-Lobos - don’t let that spoil the fun). Something about this music reminds me of the piano-music of Brad Mehldau: it sounds familiar and at the same time it’s something new.