Lookout for Hope
Jerry Douglas, who's most often heard adding lustrous Dobro lines toAlison Krauss's Union Station and umpteen country and pop records, uses his periodic solo albums to stretch the stylistic boundaries of steel strings and a slide bar.Lookout for Hopebegins on a sweetly familiar note with a multitracked Dobro arrangement ofDuane Allman's ever-popular "Little Martha," then ventures toward bluegrass, bebop, and points between and beyond. On many tracks, drums and even a dash of saxophone enhance the core acoustic string sounds, and low-key vocal cameos fromMaura O'Connell("Footsteps Fall") andJames Taylor("The Suit") offer a nice changeup from the high-powered instrumental action. Most intriguing is the title track (written by jazz guitaristBill Frisell), in which the interlocking mandolin chops ofSam Bushand Nickel Creek'sChris Thilecreate a hypnotic groove that Douglas, guitaristBryan Sutton, and Phish'sTrey Anastasioride into a 10-minute space jam.--Jeffrey Pepper Rodgers