Glenn Jones - This is the Wind That Blows it Out
(Strange Attractors)
I'm sure you know who Glenn Jones is, but just in case: Glenn's full-time band, Cul de Sac have amassed a huge following and have been releasing records since well into the Grunge Administration. Despite their long running career, they have only just recently hit their peak with the stunning Death of the Sun (also released by Strange Attractors). And, while this is Glenn's first solo release, he has been playing solo shows for some time around the Northeast, perhaps most notably at the notorious (was it?) Brattleboro Free Folk Festival a couple years back. He also recently lent his guitar prowess to Jack Rose for a track on his second LP, Opium Musick.
This collaboration is very fitting for Glenn, as his solo music is very much in line with Jack Rose's. Jones has an incredibly adept control of the guitar. Over the course of this album's 43 minutes, his guitar soars, stomps, and burrows its way through your speakers with many faces. It opens with the blues-tinged title track, which mournfully moans its way into the deeply moody "Sphinx Unto Curious Men" which was originally released, in greatly truncated form on Cul de Sac's most recent effort, The Strangler's Wife. "Linden Avenue Stomp" has a ragtime feel and may sound familiar: it is the only song on this album with a guest appearance (Jack Rose), and it is the song that Glenn co-wrote for Jack Rose's album (though it is a different take than the song on Opium Musick). "The Doll Hospital" shows Glenn's obvious love for Fahey's music, and "One Jack Rose (That I Mean)" is a richly melodic take on Americana.
Glenn's technical abilities are above any kind of criticism. The first time I saw him play, I was literally watching in disbelief, as the movement of his fingers didn't seem to be matching up with the music coming from his guitar. And I've played guitar for 10 years. I'm generally able to pick apart basically everything I see performed live. But I wasn't prepared for that first time seeing Glenn. But, beyond that, he has the musical wherewithal to release an album like this, packed full of hints, influences, and references to a myriad of world and especially traditional American musics, but make it all so hard to pin down to a single thing.
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