George Winston - Montana: A Love Story
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CD Details
Artist: George WinstonEdition: Music CD
Format: Import
CD Release Date: 2004-10-12
Music Label: RCA Victor
Product features:
- George Winston - Montana - A Love Story
- Thumbelina
- Billy In The Low Land
- Valse Frontenac
- The Little House I Used To Live In
- Montana Glide
- Nevertheless, Hello
- The Twisting Of The Hay Rope (Casadh An Tsugain)
- Joy, Hope, And Peace
- You Send Me
- High Plains Lullaby
- The Mountain Winds Call Your Name
- Music Box (Kojo No Tsuki)
- Raining In Her (The Muse)
- (Variations On) Bamboo
- Goodnight Irene
- Sweet Soul (Gobajie)
- Sky (Goobajie)
Music reviews of Montana: A Love Story
Music Review: George Winston returneth, but is he at his best...?
Rating: 4 Stars
It is true that this long awaited album is an album close to the heart of George Winston, but is it all it should have been, or could have been? After all, it has been labeled as being the album that takes George Winston back to his roots. Now, when I think of George Winston going back to his roots, musically, I think of Autumn, December, or Winter Into Spring. Montana - A Love Story, I'm afraid, can't quite hold a candle to these albums, nor could it to Summer or Forest. This album is much more closely related to his latter work, Plains, than anything else. And while I liked Plains, it just didn't flow as well as it should have, not the album as a whole or the individual songs therein. There are a few stand out songs from Plains that make it worth having, and listening to frequently, and unfortunately, such is true with Montana - A Love Story.
So, like Plains, I did find a few songs rather exceptional from this new album, of those being: Thumbelina, High Plains Lullaby, The Mountain Winds Call Your Name, Sweet Soul, and Sky. There are others that are worth mentioning such as Valse Frontenac (to a generic degree), Nevertheless Hello (mainly right at the one minute mark), and Music Box (which is no match to Forests' Japanese Music Box). The remaining songs, while okay, failed to live up to my expectations, which did wane slightly after reading the liner notes prior to ordering/buying this CD. I say that they waned in that: I learned that only a few of the songs are original pieces (the way George Winston unfortunately likes it to be), many of the songs were noted as being fiddle or waltz pieces (not my cup of tea), and the fact that so many of the songs are under three minutes in length - I miss the five plus minute songs of old. And I am not quite sure of the artists' intention on the last song, Sky. It seems to end on a rather odd note, or three. I am still trying to figure this one out. It's a great song, but slightly unsettling. Perhaps due to this song's meaning. Of which you'd be best to check out the liner notes for. Sweet Soul and Sky are dedication pieces.
I must say that it pains me a bit to talk so negatively about this album, as it took an obvious amount of energy and feeling from George Winston, but I can't help pointing out my personal opinions based on my ongoing and established appreciation and love of George Winston's music.
One more thing I should note about this CD on a more technical side, as it can be a bit unsettling to the discerning listener. The quality of this album seems to lack overall, and heavily during certain songs. It almost feels as if I am listening to a live recording, with slight indications of the microphone picking up subtle sloshing around of the artist on the piano. While it doesn't distract one's attention too terribly from the works at hand, it can be annoying, especially during one song in particular - The Mountain Winds Call Your Name (my favorite one). This was apparent on Plains as well, but much more prevalent here with Montana - A Love Story. Just a mild warning, that's all.
George Winston proclaimed on many an occasion that he plays mainly in melodic or diatonic form, yet I don't feel that the works contained within this album follow suit. They are a bit, say, more bouncy and sporadic in nature. They do not flow as well as perhaps they should, or at least could have, and tend to repeat in a more chorus like effect than what I am used to with George Winston. He does seem to like to circle around a bit within pieces, and that's fine, but with Montana, he seems to have begun the repetition process for many a song without even going full circle, if that makes any sense. So while I do like this album, I am deeply dissatisfied. However, I cannot rate the album lower because of this, as I am a finicky listener, and expect only the best out of George Winston - an artist I have been listening to [nearly solely] for over fifteen years. And to have waited as long as I have for this CD, one that failed to meet my expectations, is disheartening to an even further degree to know that he won't release another for quite some time, maybe four or five years. I want another Autumn, December, Winter Into Spring, or another Summer or Forest. I want the Seasons back. Sure he may have covered them all by now, but why not revisit them? In fact, I'd be content with a George Winston arranged album of his previous works, as he plays many alternate versions during his live concerts that are beyond outstanding. That is of course, a lofty wish to be sure.
Description of Montana: A Love Story
CD > POPULAR MUSIC > JAZZFrom the opening piano notes of Montana: A Love Story, George Winston fans are sure to feel they've returned to safer ground after his last album, The Night Divides the Day, the pianist's dip into the acid rock of The Doors. There's nothing on Montana that wouldn't feel at home to anyone who has followed him since his first two albums on Takoma and Windham Hill records. Winston has carved out a space for open-air melodies that seem to echo off the Montana plains that have provided so much of his metaphorical imagery over the years. It's an attractive sound which, at its best, recalls Keith Jarrett's more contemplative ruminations, and at its worst, sounds like cocktail music by someone without a good fake book. The pure Winston sound can be heard on his originals, including "High Plains Lullaby," as well as covers like Mark Isham's childlike "Thumbelina." But Winston also plays Celtic tunes, Sam Cooke's R&B hit, "You Send Me," and Leadbelly's "Goodnight Irene." And just to put you on edge, he does Frank Zappa's angular "The Little House I Used to Live In." He says it reminded him of the little house in which he grew up in Montana. When he explores these different styles, he becomes a more generic pianist, the kind you might hear at the local shopping mall. But on the reverie of "Sweet Soul" and the exoticism of "Sky," the distinct Winston sound is revealed as he continues to forge his brand of American Plains piano. --John Diliberto
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