Nashville

Entertainment Weekly (5/30/97, p.73) - "...one of the freshest variations on mostly unplugged C&W around. Frisell lays down his sweet and languid sound, getting help form such folks as Dobro king Jerry Douglas and vocalist Robin Holcolm. It's lazy, smart, twilight-on-the-back-porch music." - Rating: B+ Down Beat (8/97, pp.48-49) - 4 1/2 stars (out of 5) - "...it's hard to believe Frisell's only exposure might have been from watching Minnie Pearl and the Grand Ol' Opry on TV....what is most striking about Frisell...is how...he makes you forget where you are, losing you in a swirl of creativity that has little or nothing to do with genres or...settings..." JazzTimes (9/97, p.73) - "...Frisell's sweet 'n' slightly twisted songwriting flair is on the money here....Frisell's guitaristic approach, often sounding like a cross between Chet Atkins and a Martian pedal steel, player shows respect for tradition by tugging it in new directions." Option (9-10/97, p.95) - "...magically sidesteps the faceless tedium that dooms so many instrumental albums. There are several reasons for that: Frisell's nimble, confident finger-picking; a group of stellar Music City pickers who support Frisell without getting flashy or pretentious; and a unifying musical voice..." Musician (8/97, p.91) - "...an evocation of folk traditions that have been gathering steam under the heading of Americana....retro visions of drive-in movies, endless highways, and lost innocence....among the earthiest and [most] deeply felt of Frisell's many fine recordings..."

The vague country elements long dwelling on the fringes of Bill Frisell's music rise to the forefront on Nashville, an exquisitely atmospheric collection recorded in Music City with the aid of dobro legend Jerry Douglas, Union Station members Adam Steffey and Ron Block, and Lyle Lovett & His Large Band's bassist Viktor Krauss. Produced by Wayne Horvitz, the record is both genuine and alien -- while played with real affection for the country form and without any avant posturing, its sound is original and distinct, a cinematic variation on C&W tenets. While primarily instrumental and comprised largely of Frisell originals, Nashville does welcome vocalist Robin Holcomb for a pair of more traditional numbers -- Hazel Dickens' "Will Jesus Wash the Bloodstains from Your Hands" and the Skeeter Davis hit "The End of the World" -- as well as a cover of Neil Young's "One of These Days." ~ Jason Ankeny