Restless on the Farm
Dobro wizard Jerry Douglas is well aware that less is more, that lyrical lines and harmonies can take a tune to the farthest shores. As a collaborator, he has brought out the best in fellow "newgrass" innovators from Sam Bush to Bela Fleck to Russ Barenberg, and, luckily, Douglas also knows when to let his slide take center stage. On his first solo album in six years, the Resophonic monster--rightly nicknamed "Flux"--ranges from breakdowns to bouncing blues to the exquisite longing of his own "For Those Who've Gone Clear." As always, he brings his instrument's vocal ability to the fore--take the great stoner song "Turkish Taffee" or the wide-open "TV Doctor," on which John Cowan contributes a surprisingly bombast-free vocal. And his interplay with Maura O'Connell on Paul Brady's "Follow On" is a classic bit of shivery Celtic eloquence.--Kerry Fried