Those who savor the sweet and simple beauty of Bill Frisell's more country/ western compositions like "When We Go," "Lonesome" and "Little Brother Bobby" ought to be extremely satisfied with this terrific new disc. Nashville, as it's title suggests, is filled with many variations of American heartland music --- pure folk ("Gimme A Holler" and "Brother") to rollicking bluegrass ("Go Jake") and deep country blues ("Pipe Down") to achingly memorable ballads ("Keep Your Eyes Open" and "Family").

Most of Nashville is made up of Frisell's sparkling originals. The covers, all three featuring the lovely vocal talents of Robin Holcomb, include Neil Young's "One Of These Days," the marvelous "Will Jesus Wash The Bloodstains From Your Hands" and "The End Of The World."

Frisell sticks to acoustic and electric guitar throughout Nashville. He avoids guitar synth altogether here -- and the result is much better and more honest for it (though he's probably guitar synth's most individualistic stylist). He does it all without aid of a drummer or percussionist too. Once you realize it, you have to stop and consider how rhythmic and exciting he can be. Quieter pieces like the near-dissonant "Brother" and the cool off-kilter Monk-ish blues of "We're Not From Around Here" offer considerable proof.

On hand to keep things moving is a talented bunch of individuals who really seem to care about what they are playing. Each is used in bits and pieces (there are a number of duo, trio and quartet performances) and includes the talented Jerry Douglas on dobro, Ron Block on banjo and acoustic guitar, Victor Krauss on bass, Adam Steffy on mandolin and on two tracks, Pat Bergenson playing harmonica. Frisell keeps it appropriately simple too. He never layers sounds or loads up the instrumentation. As a result, the insturmentational simplicity brings out the charm of his lovely tunes.

Even though Nashville is clearly one of his strongest collection of compositions, Frisell and company avoids excessive improvisation and tends toward utilizings basic frameworks throughout. "Shucks," for example seems based on "Three Blind Mice" -- and more than a couple tunes suggest the Rolling Stones' "Satisfaction" as a starting point for a variety of directions.

Nashville is one of Bill Frisell's very best. It's as likely to appeal to his divergent fans as it is to those who admire the stylistic virtuosity of Ry Cooder -- even Neil Young and Leo Kottke. Most highly recommended and one of the year's least likely best.