Delta: 13 Solos In Notation And Tablature
Delta is a collection of compositions written over about a 20 year period. "Blue Stairways", for example, is 20 years old and has never appeared on one of my CDs until now! Some of these compositions made their debuts in Fingerstyle Guitar Magazine as part of my Fingerstyle Basics column. These include: Sambavacation, BluesRay, Elegy for a Surfer, Blue Stairways, Cool Colors, Sailing for America, and Seven Heaven. The title, "Delta", is drawn specifically from the last movement of the Blues Suite that wrote for Stanley Yates back in '99. Stanley toured England playing the entire Suite at his concerts. He returned to the States with reports as to the success of the Blues Suite and, in particular, the Delta movement. This was a thrill to me that Yates' audience composed of classical guitar connoisseurs, would like such a rootsy, twangy, folksy guitar solo. Back then, I did not even perform the tune myself. Dr. Yates strongly suggested that I had "better start playing it". The version that I play now is actually very different than the one originally written for Stanley. In fact, you may hear recordings, see videos and performances where I have played my compositions any number of ways. Although the "Delta" reference is clearly a nod to my blues influences and Southern roots, the title also represents divergence. In all, this collection contains a variety of musical explorations: Bossa Nova and samba (Sambavacation and Rafaela), Mediterranean (Seven Heaven and Almeria High Noon), Jazz (Elegy for a Surfer and others), "Celtic" (Sailing for America). With all this extrapolation, there are compositions here that represent a more personal style (Dance of the Spirits, Undersea).
