Levee Town (Expanded Edition)

by Bob GottliebThis is slide guitar wizard, Sonny Landreth's most ambitious work and true to form it comes with no glossy fanfare (even the packaging is sepia tint) just straight ahead well crafted songs played with his usual intelligent, heart felt playing. Like the photos, that are easily passed over due to the quiet subtly of the sepia tones, the intricacy of his guitar work can easily be overshadowed by the flash that is inherent in the slide guitar. He takes the time here to do a number of acoustic songs and show that there is more to him than the loud flash and that there is a guitarist that knows how to play without noise to disguise mistakes. Give a listen to Love and Glory, in which he is helped out by Jennifer Warnes and Herb Pederson doing background vocals, Errol Verret on accordion, and some stunning fiddle work by Michael Doucet. He wrote all the songs except Angeline, which he co-wrote with Will Jennings, and his sophistication as a story teller is becoming more fully developed.This is a disc that shows his true maturity as a songwriter. He has a tight band working with him, and he employs his friends that help out to best advantage. There is plenty of straight ahead high voltage Zydeco here, and there is also that quieter more introspective song that serves as a peak inside the man. A well realized and balanced piece of work that truly reflects his Zydeco/Louisiana roots.