Leo+kottke

Leo Kottke (born September 11, 1945) is an acoustic guitarist. He is known for a fingerpicking style that draws on blues, jazz, and folk music, and for syncopated, polyphonic melodies. He overcame a series of personal obstacles, including partial loss of hearing and a nearly career-ending bout with tendon damage in his right hand, to emerge as a widely recognized master of his instrument…

Leo Kotke's 1995 release, Leo Live, is a welcome addition to his repertoire. Kotke has gotten past his earlier reluctance to perform vocals, and his voice here sounds comfortable and assured on tracks like "Room at the Top of the Stairs" and the talking blues "Jack Gets Up." Yet, as is characteristic of his style, it's his instrumental work on cuts like "Peg Leg," "Little Martha," and a mellow version of the old classic "Twilight Time" that show the artist in peak form. Kotke's mildly "Oddball" proclivities may come through in song titles like "I Yell at Traffic" and "Flattened Brain," yet whatever he names it, his playing is consistently top of the mark. Definitely recommended.

Leo Kottke - Time Step (1983) {Chrysalis BGOCD255 rel 1995}
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© 1983, 1995 Chrysalis Records / BGO Records | BGOCD255
Finger-Picked Guitar / Progressive Folk / Jazz Blues / Contemporary Folk / New Acoustic

Having followed Leo Kottke since 1974 I can honestly say this album is a keeper. All the tunes are vintage Kottke but "Rings", written as sort of a joke by Alex Harvey and Ed Reeves, is fantastic. Time Step is Kottke's last recording on the Chrysalis label. It is the first of two Kottke albums produced by T-Bone Burnett, the second being My Father's Face. Guests include Albert Lee and Emmylou Harris. After the release of Time Step Kottke went into a three-year seclusion. When he returned later in 1986, it was as a guest musician on The Blind Leading the Naked by Violent Femmes, then his own releases with a new direction and picking style.

Leo Kottke - Leo Kottke (1977) {Chrysalis–BGO Records BGOCD257 rel 1994}
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© 1977, 1994 Chrysalis / BGO Records | BGOCD257
Finger-Picked Guitar / Progressive Folk / Jazz Blues / Contemporary Folk / New Acoustic

I'd call this Leo's "Romantic Period," because he really shows the creative potential of the 12-string: much like he's painting colors and tones with the notes he's plucking in order to create a landscape-of-sound theme for each song. It's an enigmatic collection–no two songs quite repeat, and thankfully, nothing spoiling this by rehashing previously released material. The energy is very high in his agility; minor chord combinations that enhance effortlessly rather than challenge the ear, and a lush assistance by others on keyboards, woodwinds, and even strings.

Leo Kottke - Burnt Lips (1978) {Chrysalis–BGO Records BGOCD259 rel 1994}
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© 1978, 1994 Chrysalis Records / BGO Records | BGOCD259
Finger-Picked Guitar / Progressive Folk / Contemporary Folk / New Acoustic

The subjects of death and betrayal permeate this understandably dark album. Opening with the Nick Lowe chestnut "Endless Sleep" as a slow acoustic blues, this unpredictable guitar un-star also sings about "Sonora's Death Row" and offers the opinion that "Everybody Lies." His always problematic singing assumes a prominent role, which might not be the best strategy. He showcases his string wizardry on "A Dull Thud" and several other instrumentals.

Leo Kottke - One Guitar, No Vocals (1999) {Private Music–BMG 01005821712}
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© 1999 Private Music / BMG | 01005 82171 2
Finger-Picked Guitar / Progressive Folk / Jazz Blues / Contemporary Folk / New Acoustic

Leo Kottke has always been known primarily as a guitarist, yet it has been a number of years since he's released a solo guitar record, which is what makes One Guitar, No Vocals welcome. Kottke is at his most impressive at his most intimate, turning out alternately gentle and intense solo guitar pieces. No matter how complex the music is – and it is, at minimum, moderately complex – Kottke pulls it off with grace, making it all seem easy.

John Fahey, Peter Lang, Leo Kottke - John Fahey, Peter Lang, Leo Kottke (1974) {Takoma ‎TAKCD-6502-2 rel 1996}
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© 1974, 1996 Takoma ‎Records / Fantasy | TAKCD-6502-2
Finger-Picked Guitar / Progressive Folk / Jazz Blues / Contemporary Folk / New Acoustic

In the 1950s the young John Fahey discovered the funky, unpretentious, down-home, spontaneous guitar-oriented 78s recorded in the late 1920s and early 1930s by rural Southern black and poor white folks. He changed the music to suit his own image of what art should be and created the concept of the solo steel-string guitarist/composer. Leo Kottke built on Fahey's vision, made it more accessible, and proved how large the market could be. In 1974 these two quitar giants, joined by Peter Lang, who proves on these cuts to be a guitarist of equal ability, put out this excellent and influential LP.

Leo Kottke & Mike Gordon - Sixty Six Steps (2005) {RCA Victor 82876 68909-2}
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© 2005 RCA Victor | 82876 68909-2
Finger-Picked Guitar / Progressive Folk / Americana / Contemporary Folk / New Acoustic

The second collaboration of Leo Kottke with ex-Phish bassist Mike Gordon finds the duo exploring breezy Caribbean sounds, with a few surprise covers. The musicians work wonderfully together, with Gordon's meaty yet malleable bass grounding and darting around Kottke's distinctive and agile fingerpicked lines. Percussion reinforces the island sound (the album was recorded at the famous Compass Point Studios in Nassau) and provides a terrific backbone for the album's tropical approach. Neither Gordon nor Kottke have great (or even good) voices – the bassist's is particularly thin – but they admirably dig into the songs, singing on about half of the tracks with a charming, easygoing quality that suits the material and shows they are enjoying this ride.