Published on Apr 18, 2002
Not long after reviewing the latest release from fingerstyle
guitarist Larry Pattis, I remembered I had another disc from El
McMeen (with whom Pattis has been touring recently) waiting for me
in the Pierce Memorial Archives. So, to El, sorry it’s taken me so
long to get to
Playing Favorites.
This 1996 release is a slight change of pace for McMeen, who may
be best known to faithful “DV” readers for his Celtic fingerstyle
guitar work (including his take on songs from the late Irish
harpist Turlough O’Carolan). While there are some traditional songs
on
Playing Favorites which feature McMeen in a style familiar
to most listeners, he takes the bold step of playing some more
modern selections and making them sound like they always belonged
on the acoustic guitar. What’s even more interesting is that they
so overpower the traditional songs, that the style that McMeen is
known for seems to suffer a bit.
Oh, don’t get me wrong, it’s not that I don’t want to hear
McMeen’s takes on songs like “Blind Mary” and “The Fairflower Of
Northumberland” (the former being one of two Carolan songs that
McMeen re-works). In fact, “Blind Mary” is the perfect way for
McMeen to open this album, a collection of his own favorite songs
re-worked for his playing style. McMeen’s playing can still move me
nearly to tears when it catches me just right, and these songs are
prime examples of his power.
Yet they sometimes seem out of place when intermixed with
acoustic versions of “What A Wonderful World,” “The Wind Beneath My
Wings” and “Desperado,” amongst others. Even if you’ve grown up
listening to a particular version of a song which, in your mind, is
the definitive version, McMeen makes strong arguments with his own
takes on these songs. Yes, “The Wind Beneath My Wings” is
incredibly overplayed on adult-contemporary radio, but McMeen
brings a sense of freshness to the song with his gentle picking and
harmony. Yes, “Guantanamera” is a song that can drive me up the
walls thanks to the Muzak versions I grew up with; McMeen’s is like
a drink of ice water on a hot day, giving this song a whole new
lease on life in my book.
Even a song like “Desperado,” which had a gentle-yet-rough edge
on the original by The Eagles, is turned into a gentle number in
the hands of McMeen, almost becoming a thoughtful lullaby. The
interesting factor is not that McMeen is able to turn these songs
into fingerstyle guitar pieces; the interesting factor is how he
keeps the soul of the original songs alive while creating a whole
new skeleton for them.
And yet I still can’t quite shake the feeling that I miss
McMeen’s normal modus operandi – the same mixture of traditional
folk songs with the occasional modern-day marvel thrown in – that
I’ve become accustomed to since discovering McMeen on a Rounder
compilation. Granted, McMeen’s discography has plenty of these kind
of releases, and
Playing Favorites is a relaxing collection of tunes that
further demonstrates McMeen’s mastery of the guitar, even if it
leaves me longing for more of the Celtic side of McMeen’s music.
Just call me traditionalist, I guess.
For more information or to order this disc, please
visit El McMeen’s
web site.