Tone Poems III: The Sounds of the Great Slide & Resophonic Instruments

David Grisman is clearly onto something with his continuing Tone Poems series. On the first volume, he was joined by Tony Rice on a set of music that illustrated the evolution of vintage instruments and bluegrass. Tone Poems II focused on jazz--standards and otherwise--using a similar lineup of coveted mandolins and guitars (this time played by Grisman and Martin Taylor). On Tone Poems III, we get to hear the gorgeous-sounding--and gorgeous-looking--resonator and slide instruments that found their popularity in the 1920s Hawaiian music craze and evolved into fixtures of blues, country, and bluegrass. The recorded sound of these Weissenborns, Gibsons, Martins, and Nationals is sublime, and the extensive liner-note photos will have instrument collectors drooling. The lineup of Grisman with guitarists Bob Brozman and Mike Auldridge is instrumental versatility defined--they tackle Jimmie Rodgers's "Peach Pickin' Time in Georgia," standards ("St. Louis Blues"), even so-called newgrass ("New Steal"), along with plenty of blues and Hawaiian cuts. Priceless instruments, timeless music, and a must-have for acoustic music lovers. --Jason Verlinde