Wayfarer: A Celtic Pilgrimage

John Doan plays the harp guitar, an obscure antique instrument with an indeterminate lineage. When you hear Doan play, it sounds like more than one musician performing. It's not that his lines are so complicated, but deep lows and ringing highs are mixed in with the sound of conventional acoustic guitar strings.

Although Doan doesn't play traditional music, the American musician uses the harp guitar to profess his love of the Celtic Isles. Wayfarer follows up his previous album, Eire: Isle of the Saints, with another collection of songs woven together with the intricacy of a Celtic knot. Inspired by his travels to sacred locations in Ireland, Doan often composed this music right on the spot. Amplified by Billy Oskay's immaculate production, Doan's gorgeous melodies lift off the heather accompanied by Irish whistles, subtle choirs, and enveloping atmospheres. With Wayfarer, Doan once again goes beyond the Celtic clichés and rote standards for an album that brings the mystery back to Ireland. --John Diliberto