The Influence

by Scott YanowAfter barely being on records at all from 1957-74 (just three albums of material and only 1½ albums during 1958-73), the great guitarist Jimmy Raney had several opportunities to record for Xanadu during 1975-76. His debut for the label consists of six trio numbers with bassist Sam Jones and drummer Billy Higgins, along with a couple of unaccompanied solos: "The End of a Love Affair" and his original and somewhat free-form "Suzanne," which (via overdubbing) has two guitars. Otherwise, the set sticks to trio standards, with Raney swinging hard with his distinctive cool tone on such numbers as "I Love You," "It Could Happen to You" and "There Will Never Be Another You." Recommended but not yet available on CD.