Craig Chaquico - Panorama - The Best of Craig Chaquico (2000)
Genre: Smooth Jazz | Label: Higher Octave | 2000 | CBR 320kbps; 168 Mb | 1:13:27

When former Jefferson Starship guitarist Craig Chaquico (cha-KEY-so) reinvented himself as a pop instrumentalist in 1993 (the year he released Acoustic Highway, his solo debut), he brought the still-fledgling contemporary instrumental genre one of its freshest sounds in years. Chaquico blended skillful pop-rock-blues songcraft with studio savvy to produce a lush, layered acoustic sound so full-bodied that at times he seemed to be leading a guitar choir. His initial hit, the title track from that first disc (and the concluding piece on this best-of package), remains one of the most cheerfully infectious tunes in this category. Other selections on Panorama, a retrospective that samples his first five recordings, also capture the hip, lyrical joyfulness of Chaquico's early work ("Native Tongue," "Sacred Ground," "Return of the Eagle"), where new melodic ideas might pop up at any point in the composition. Elements of smooth jazz began surfacing on his third disc, A Thousand Pictures, and that trend has persisted ever since, draining some of the organic, free-spirited spark from Chaquico's music. The two new tunes found on this disc, "Café Carnival" (a Latin big-band production) and "Beyond Words," suggest that pattern still prevails, and while Chaquico can make smooth jazz sound pretty good (try "Sweet Talk"), that easy-listening glaze is an unnecessary crutch for such an imaginative player. Nevertheless, Panorama is an attractive package; just a touch too sweet in places.

After creating a major stir in the U.S. in 1969, violinist Jean-Luc Ponty returned to his native France for a couple years. One of his few recordings from the period is this stimulating date which was last made available in the U.S. as a Pausa LP. Ponty teams up with keyboardist Joachim Kuhn, guitarist Philip Catherine, bassist Peter Warren and drummer Oliver Johnson for his three-part, side-long "Flipping," the lengthy "Open Strings" and Kuhn's "Sad Ballad." The electric violinist's dynamic playing is heard in peak form throughout the colorful album, an early and creative fusion date.

Scott Yanow, All Music Guide

Dire Straits - 1991 - On Every Street[lossless]
Genre: Rock | 1991 | Label: Vertigo | FLAC+CUE+LOG; 345 Mb | 1:00:17

On Every Street is an amazing album, if only for its apparent refusal to exploit the success of its predecessor. Sure, radio programmers could hear echoes of "Money for Nothing" in "Heavy Fuel," or traces of "Walk of Life" in "The Bug," but Mark Knopfler wouldn't have waited six years to follow up the band's megaplatinum Brothers in Arms if that was all he had in mind. Instead, he took time out to play with the Notting Hillbillies and Chet Atkins (while most British guitar heroes idolize American blues, Knopfler obviously has a thing for Nashville). On Every Street finds those influences complementing the late-night melancholy that's always been Dire Straits' specialty. Instead of Sting singing "I Want My MTV," fans got Hillbillies pedal steel player Paul Franklin adding to the high-lonesome sound of the quite infectious title track and the epic "Planet of New Orleans," along with meditations on the mistreatment of striking miners in the cinematic "Iron Fist," and some of Knopfler's most haunting guitar work throughout. The result can be seen as a dignified–and, at times, even inspiring–farewell album.

Bill Forman