Ralph Towner - Solo Concert

This CD catches guitarist Ralph Towner at a 1979 solo concert, but as the title of the closing John Abercrombie tune suggests, there's a timeless quality to Towner's music, from crystalline runs to singing harmonics. It's not just the unadorned sounds of his acoustic 12-string and classical guitars but what he does with them. Towner's astonishing 12-string technique reaches back through folk sources to suggest a baroque harpsichord, while his modal improvisations return the Miles Davis influence (e.g., "Nardis") to its original flamenco and near-Eastern sources. While the appeal of combining folk, classical, world, and jazz elements can easily lead to pastiche, this concert emphasizes shared features. What could easily be the display of empty technique in lesser hands becomes whole music in Towner's hands--a complex, rhythmically vital, personal idiom. --Stuart Broomer Amazon.com

Towner's Best Solo Performance

"Solo Concert" was recorded October 1979 and released in 1980 on ECM and is a fine example of solo guitar. Ralph Towner may be best known for his involvement in the group Oregon, but while this may be true, he has done some very excellent albums under his own name. He has worked with several fantastic musicians on his solo albums up to this point in 1979: Kenny Wheeler, Eddie Gomez, Jan Garbarek, Eberhard Weber, Jack DeJohnette, John Abercrombie, David Darling, to name a few. If you want to hear Ralph Towner in a great group setting then check "Solstice," "Solstice: Sound and Shadows," and "Old Friends, New Friends." All these albums demonstrate great group playing. But all of Ralph's albums are highly recommended.

"Solo Concert" is one of those rare performances that captures the excitement of Ralph Towner. The song selections are all top-notch ranging from his own compositions like "Spirit Lake" and "Chelsea Courtyard" to John Abercrombie ("Ralph's Piano Waltz, "Timeless") to Miles Davis' "Nardis." All selections are performed with passion and enthusiasm. They are also all very interesting. Solo performances sometimes leave me cold and make me feel like what I just heard was a waste of perfectly good cd space, but "Solo Concert" is an exception. Towner's 12-string and classical guitar playing are very interesting and there are good uses of dynamics which is something I feel is important in music. His attention to tonal variety is also worth mentioning as he merely acts like a painter with his guitar. I wish I would have checked this recording out sooner than I did. I've owned his album "Solstice" for years, but haven't checked out anything else by Towner until recently. I now own 14 Towner albums.

For anyone interested in solo 12-string guitar and classical guitar, excellent musicianship, and great compositions, then look no further as "Solo Concert" will provide you with a great listening experience and hopefully repeated listenings for you in the future.

If you like Ralph Towner, then buy this album now! May 15, 2007

Timeless, indeed

I concur with the superlatives offered by others here.

I can simply say that this album has been on my desert island list for all of the 20+ years I've owned it. It is an achingly beautiful and technically amazing guitar showcase. It is extraordinary too in its balance of compositional depth and nuanced interpretation.

If you have not heard much Ralph Towner, especially his solo works, then it will be a novelty to you as well, and will reward your curiosity - it really does not resemble the work of anyone else I can think of. If you like Towner, this is a must-have.

Oh yeah, the sound is amazing, too. April 4, 2006

Beautiful, Huge, Splendid Music for SOLO guitar

The compositions are brilliant. The interpretations are what you expect or hope from Ralph Towner; they are huge. It's like an orchestra in an immense valley (sorry not a professional poet, but trying my best here...). Not only a musical masterpiece, but the recorded sound is the best you will ever get for the guitar. You get the richness, the airy-ness, the sparkle. It's an album that is very deep, and one should be prepared to LISTEN and let the compositions develop. To me, it is a masterpiece. December 12, 2005

A Live Solo Acoustic Masterpiece

This is without a doubt one of the greatest acoustic guitar albums ever. Ralph Towner's 12 string and 6 string excursions are beautifully recorded and performed to perfection. The opening, "Spirit Lake", is as dramatic as any Aaron Copeland composition. The imagery and drama of the piece is absolutley stunning. His interpretations of John Abercrombie's "Ralph's Piano Waltz" and "Timeless", are other album highlights. The latter comes very close to surpassing the original version, which is no small undertaking.
Ralph Towner's Solo Concert redefines acoustic music, mixing excellent compositions with sophistiated improvisations. No one should ever buy any other solo acoustic guitar album without buying this one first.
February 20, 2005

American Masterpiece

Ralph Towner's Solo Concert, recorded in 1979 at the height of a period when Chick Corea and Keith Jarrett were concertizing and recording solo performances, marks an ultimate high in the history of jazz guitar playing. Towner's technical approach to the instrument, incredibly originally-voiced compositions and deeply emotionally-charged performances make this recording a landmark. Solo Concert may be the finest hour for serious solo guitar jazz and improvisational music performances. Other great guitarists have recorded solo jazz standards and modern music but this recording is very different than those, largely because of Towner's artistic originality and musical weight. These qualities cannot be overstated. It is rare in all music to find an artist this deep and true - one who has developed a musical technique so great and yet maintains the ability to express himself without getting caught in the web of technique. Towner's now historic recording of 'Nardis' is perhaps one of the great performances of this tune. He captures both the spirit of Miles Davis' intentions and develops the improvisation in an idiomatic manner which sings on the guitar. Towner has long stated that he never wanted to play bop-related music on the classical guitar - he plays in a more straight-ahead style on the piano. After hearing Nardis, one only can wish that he would record more tunes of this sort. Yet, Towner as one of the great improvising composers has developed his own compositions as his vehicle for expression.
His 'Anna' and 'Anthem' are also truly remarkable, and in some ways mark another evolutionary step for him - he seems to improve with age - but there is some quality to this recording which seems never again to be captured. Listen to his expressions on the 12-string in 'Spirit Lake' for example. This recording is for those who are willing to be captured in a sound world totally unusual -even for those experienced in the complexties of music. This music is at times simple, and complex yet easy to listen to. Mostly though, Towner's performances are simply captivating. Here he offers what a real new age of music could be - a vernacular american masterpiece. September 25, 2004

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