December's Child
Since splitting from theJayhawksto go creek  dipping with wifeVictoria  Williams, Mark Olson has continued to celebrate homespun musical values and  his creative independence from the recording industry. While there's nothing  slick aboutDecember's Child, the melodic warmth of material such as  "Still We Have a Friend in You" and "Back to the Old Homeplace" has an almost  spiritual glow to it, while the album's arrangements employ trumpet, fiddle,  piano, wah-wah guitar--and even doo-wop harmonies--to seemingly organic effect.  Uptempo fare such as "How Can I Send Tonight (There to Tell You)" and "Climb  These Steps (We Will)" recall the reedy-voiced yearning of Olson's Jayhawks  days, while "Say You'll Be Mine" reunites him with former bandmate Gary Louris.  The closing "One-Eyed Black Dog Moses" is a hoot, with a hypnotically funky  groove that has Williams pushing her vocals to cartoonish extremes.--Don  McLeese