Description:	LP on Thrill Jockey
	Format:	LP (vinyl)
	Genre(s):	Solo Guitar
	Label:	Thrill Jockey
	Price:	£12.79
	Availability:	Sold out / currently unavailable. Sorry!

4
...according to our Brett on 26 February 2010.

It's obviously a more than a little heartbreaking to think of Jack Rose's death coming just before his debut for a bigger label (who've gone the extra mile with a gorgeous sleeve here, as it goes), one which sounds to me like a conscious summation of what he's done so far with a view perhaps to clearing the way before pushing on to the next stage of his journey. Instead of focusing on one particular style as with most of his previous records - such as the droney ragas of Raag Manifestos or the earthy bluegrass of his Dr. Ragtime releases - this one takes in his full repertoire, adding to the above with stunning flamenco-tinged numbers, ridiculously fun barnstormin' hoedowns and the faithful Fahey-like primitivist blues he always did so well. In that respect I'd say that this is probably the perfect Jack Rose record for the uninitiated to start with or converts to reach for when they're undecided on what exactly they'd like to hear. So one I'd recommend to pretty much everybody then!

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What their label says...

· Jack Rose first rose to prominence with the drone/noise/folk unit Pelt. Pelt can be
counted among the early influential new music underground bands such as UN, No
Neck Blues Band, Charalambides, Tower Recordings and Six Organs Of
Admittance. Rose released his first solo LP in 2002, ‘Red Horse, White Mule’, of
post-Takoma, American primitive guitar. Along with the influences of John Fahey
and Robbie Basho, Rose also incorporated North Indian classical, early American
blues, bluegrass and minimalism into his singular style. 2005 saw the release of his
fourth album, ‘Kensington Blues’, which incorporated all of the aforementioned
influences and his playing/composing fully flowered. That album is now considered a
classic of contemporary guitar music.
· In 2008 and 2009 Rose released ‘Dr. Ragtime & Pals’ and ‘Jack Rose & The
Black Twig Pickers’ respectively. Those recordings featured many additional
players like Glenn Jones, Micah Blue Smaldone, Harmonica Dan and The
Black Twig Pickers. The songs drew heavily on pre-war influences, either written
by Rose or his arrangements of early American classics. ‘Luck In The Valley’ will be
the third album in this set of recordings that Rose jokingly refered to as his ‘Ditch
Trilogy’. Rose continues his exploration of pre-war American music with a set of
brand new material featuring The Black Twig Pickers, Glenn Jones, Harmonica Dan
and Hans Chew, along with a handful of solo pieces. This recording set out to
capture the energy and feel of the classic three-track shack recordings by The Wray
Brothers and Mordicai Jones. The album finds Rose employing new themes and
techniques that haven’t appeared on previous releases.
· ‘Luck In The Valley’ finds Rose at his best surrounded by like-minded friends on a
recording that is enriched by a sense of history but entirely new, vibrant
and warm.
· The CD version is presented in a four panel mini-LP style jacket. The LP version
is presented in an old-style tip-on jacket with a hand-pasted letter pressed
cover. The LP is limited to 1,000 copies and includes a free MP3 download
coupon.

Blues For Percy Danforth * Lick Mountain Ramble *
Woodpiles On The Side Of The Road * When Tailgate Drops,
The Bullshit Stops * Moon In The Gutter * Luck In The
Valley * Saint Louis Blues * Tree In The Valley *
Everybody Ought To Pray Sometime * West Coast Blues