Gershwin Country

Though Michael Feinstein remained in the public eye throughout the latter half of the 2010s, performing live and appearing intermittently as a presenter on the Turner Classic Movies network, the onetime Ira Gershwin archivist went nearly a decade without releasing any albums. It was his first gap of more than two years since his 1987 studio debut, Pure Gershwin. He comes back to key influences George and Ira Gershwin, for more than the first time, on his return, 2022s Gershwin Country. A set of 11 duets, each with different guests, it navigates timeless romantic ballads and what prove to be playfully old-fashioned, vaudeville-esque takes with giants of country music (and one with album executive producer Liza Minnelli). It opens with perhaps the most country-forward arrangement of the set, "Love Is Here to Stay," featuring Dolly Parton. The songs gentle steel guitar, fiddle, mandolin, accordion, and rhythm section, alongside Partons sincere, timeworn vocals, add just the right rustic touch to the swing-era love song, which, like the rest of the selections, sees Feinstein trade lines with his guest. Generally speaking, the ballads work best here: a lovely vocal performance by Alison Krauss highlights "Someone to Watch Over Me," and Amy Grant helps deliver a graceful, straightforward version of "They Cant Take That Away from Me," while the more complex chord progressions and key changes of "Ive Got a Crush on You" with Rosanne Cash fall more in the category of "twangy jazz." A song-appropriate slinkiness adds nuance to Feinstein and Mandy Barnetts version of "How Long Has This Been Going On?" Far from sentimental throughout, the album sees Brad Paisley deliver a rousing, stick-clacking "I Got Rhythm," including a memorable guitar solo that kicks off a series of rotating band solos and includes a quote of The Andy Griffith Show theme ("The Fishin Hole"). Elsewhere, "Fascinating Rhythm," performed by Feinstein with Vince Gill and the Time Jumpers, even includes jump blues-style group response parts. However, the record leaves listeners on an elegant, only vaguely twangy edition of "Embraceable You" by Feinstein and Minnelli. Since, taken together, the set lands in crossover territory, only swaying toward traditional country from show tune jazz, (pun opportunity aside) the album perhaps should have been titled Country Gershwin, as the balance tips toward the songwriters. ~ Marcy Donelson