Ralph Towner: At First Light

If you love the sound of the acoustic guitar, do yourself a favour and listen to this recording. Place the record on the turntable, slip the CD in the tray, press play on your streaming service, turn up the volume one notch higher than you might usually and close your eyes. As if by magic, guitarist Ralph Towner is in your home playing the songs from At First Light for you. This is a beautifully recorded and wonderfully played solo classical guitar album by this fabulous jazz guitar great.

In the liner notes Towner acknowledges that upon meeting Manfred Eicher, the founder of ECM Records, in 1970, he was taken with the approach, insight and standards of quality for making jazz recordings that Eicher employed. These high standards of sonic quality are still apparent in 2023, and Towner is still recording for ECM at 83 after all those years since his start as a recording artist.

Of the eleven compositions on the album all are by Towner except three—the traditional "Danny Boy," the wonderful "Make Someone Happy" by Jule Styne et al and "Little Old Lady" by Hoagy Carmichael. In the liner notes, Towner recalls hearing tunes from these artists as a young boy growing up; they were his earliest musical influences.

The old are melded with the new on this album in the form of Towner's own compositions. "Fat Foot" is the jewel in that crown. It sounds like a timeless jazz classic from way back, yet it is appearing here for the first time. It has a great rhythm and melody, elevated by Towner's meticulous playing. Other highlights are "At First Light" and "Flow."