Of course, newcomers to the legendary finger-style wizardry of Leo Kottke should pick up the guitarist's 1969 debut, 6 & 12 String Guitar, before they consider anything else. After listening to that masterpiece–on which Kottke plays lightning-fast instrumentals that sound like a cross between John Fahey and Bill Monroe–you can't help wanting to hear his other stuff. And Anthology is a great launching point, covering Kottke's music from 6 & 12 String through to 1983. Whereas Fahey, Kottke's finger-style forefather, ventured into weird tape loops and effects as his career progressed (and distanced his personality from his playing), Kottke did the opposite. His playing has slowed down, but Kottke now fashions himself as a singer/songwriter. And on songs like "Tiny Island" or "Julie's House"–the latter a duet with Emmylou Harris–he sounds heartfelt and human, like a more sincere version of Loudon Wainwright III. A few essential cuts are missing here, mostly from the first half of his career, and there are a few oddball tracks–Kottke warbling through "Eight Miles High" is one–but get used to it: every platter the guitarist has released seems to have a dud or three. Doesn't matter, though. To guitar fans, he'll always be godlike. –Jason Verlinde

Leo Kotke's 1995 release, Leo Live, is a welcome addition to his repertoire. Kotke has gotten past his earlier reluctance to perform vocals, and his voice here sounds comfortable and assured on tracks like "Room at the Top of the Stairs" and the talking blues "Jack Gets Up." Yet, as is characteristic of his style, it's his instrumental work on cuts like "Peg Leg," "Little Martha," and a mellow version of the old classic "Twilight Time" that show the artist in peak form. Kotke's mildly "Oddball" proclivities may come through in song titles like "I Yell at Traffic" and "Flattened Brain," yet whatever he names it, his playing is consistently top of the mark. Definitely recommended.

My Feet Are Smiling is the sixth album by guitarist Leo Kottke, his third for Capitol Records. It is a live album taken from two shows at the Tyrone Guthrie Theatre in Minneapolis, Minnesota on the 19th and 20th of December in 1972. This is taken from a One Way/CEMA Special Markets compact disc reissue in 1996.

Leo Kottke (born September 11, 1945) is an acoustic guitarist. He is known for a fingerpicking style that draws on blues, jazz, and folk music, and for syncopated, polyphonic melodies. He overcame a series of personal obstacles, including partial loss of hearing and a nearly career-ending bout with tendon damage in his right hand, to emerge as a widely recognized master of his instrument…