LENNY BREAU & RICHARD COTTEN
Pickin' Cotten (Guitarchives)
Reviewed by John Sekerka

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Childhood pal Randy Bachman's quest to immortalize the late and very troubled Lenny Breau takes another step in the right direction. Though technically impressive, Breau's studio recordings suffered from a lack of spark that is vividly displayed on this live recording. Jazz guitar can be a sufferable combination, but Breau's dazzling inventive nature made anything he played not only listenable, but down right enjoyable. Recorded on a couple of nights at the Blue Bird during Breau's Nashville sojourn in 1977, Pickin' Cotton captures the unpredictable guitarist in excellent form. Running through a series of standards, Breau picks up the pace, calling out time changes on the fly to Cotton on bass, as he takes off into his own universe. It's a breathtaking moment, and a small glimpse of his genius. A charming recollection by Cotton's wife Darci, whose family Breau was staying with, closes the disc.

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© 2002 - John Sekerka