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When I think of John Morgan, I think of his wonderful production skills (Alison Kitchen). After listening to Motionography, I can now add gifted acoustic guitar player to his accolades. This album rates F: fast forward, fluid with feeling....but it's an A on a grading scale!
First Flight takes off quickly. Technique is introduced right away so John's ability is never in question. His guitar fingerstyle work is outstanding and this song would be a great song for someone learning the guitar; my hand is numb just from listening. The Return is melodic and dances playfully at first but really gets going about a minute
and a half into this wonderfully-written number (all songs are written by John except for the Christmas track).
Dancing Daughter again shows a light side that will not be missed by the ladies. It reminds me of something Eric Clapton or early Heart would have written. When writing reviews of acoustic solo albums, you can only say so much about the technique of the player; it's the imagery that the title and guitar paint that is important because this is mood music. With that said, Benjo is a joyous, fun song...running in a field comes to mind for this reviewer,
paced by John's exceptional guitar.
One Step Closer to Cool is one of the better songs on this CD and a sure bet to pick up some new age radio play. If Moonrise were a bit longer it could be radio-bound as well. While listening to these two songs you almost feel like you're in a smoke-filled Berkley tone-poem setting with the
advantage of not actually having to tolerate that physical environment. Wonderful songwriting.
O Come, O Come Emmanuel features a classic arrangement and is beautfully played. It took guts to place it in the middle of the album instead of making it the last track. It works though, and most listeners will smile and know that the lyrics being sung in our heads are appropriate the other eleven months, too. This rendition would be a smart song to download from iTunes for your iPod to add it to your Christmas playlist.
By the time you get to Dance of the Stars you start to notice he has three dance title songs and you understand why -- his fingers are doing the dancing. The listener feels the emotion and knows he's really into the mood the song sets. You can actually watch John playing guitar on his song, "The Journey" on Google Video. Check it out, it's brilliant…shot in a weathered old barn. Season and Change keeps the inertia going. It is well-titled as you can almost see a man in a chair on his porch playing guitar with the changing Seasons behind him as life goes full circle.
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The Dance is well placed before There and Back Again as Dance keeps the poetry in motion, so to speak, and Back Again has a deeper mood. It really grabs the listener, its arrangement does not follow typical solo songwriting patterns, yet ultimately works.
John saved his best two songs for last. The Swimmer ebbs through the current smoothly, every stroke of the player's hand is on stride and masterfully done. Soar is the perfect closer as it's strong melodically and the finale slowly draws the album to a finish.
Motionography was well thought-out from inception through production. John is not someone who just sat down and wrote some songs and threw a CD together. These songs interlace seamlessly and bring a driving yet gentle spirit to the listener. This album is truly a work of art of timeless nature. Well worth the investment.
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