Not all of the writing is stellar, but Noon's deficits are generally outweighed by the duo's sense of camaraderie and musicianship, making for a strong third outing and a welcome return for Kottke, in particular. Kottke's dexterous meditation, "Noon to Noon," wears its melancholy like brittle armor while Gordon keeps things lighter, as on eccentric groovers "I Am Random" and "How Many People Are You." For the most part, the set is casual and intimate with few overdubs and the addition of drummer Jon Fishman (also of Phish) on just a handful of tracks. The instrumental tracks, "Flat Top" and "Ants," are wonderfully virtuosic performances imbued with warmth and drama in equal measure. Vocals are present on all but two of the 11 cuts, which are dotted with a pair of oddball covers: Kottke's dark-hued reading of the Byrds' "Eight Miles High" is a highlight, though Gordon's breezy folk-funk take on Prince's "Alphabet Street" never quite gets off the ground. The playing, of course, is spectacular throughout, as befitting these two instrumental giants Kottke's distinctive picking patterns sound as bold as ever and Gordon weaves them together with his own jaunty dexterity. It was covered by The Soulful Strings, Chris Hillman, The Folkswingers featuring Harihar Rao, David Houston US2 and other artists. Leo Kottke released it on the album Mudlark in 1971. Like their two previous albums, 2020's Noon is laced with complex musical figures, offbeat lyrics, and a spring-like funkiness, though it also takes more ruminative turns, thanks in part to the existential gravity of some of Kottke's songwriting contributions. Eight Miles High by Leo Kottke was written by Gene Clark, David Crosby and Roger McGuinn and was first recorded and released by The Byrds in 1966. ![]() He has overcome a series of personal obstacles, including partial loss of hearing and a nearly career-ending bout with tendon damage in his right hand, to. He is known for a fingerpicking style that draws on blues, jazz, and folk music, and for syncopated, polyphonic melodies. Leo Kottke Eight Miles High (The Byrds cover) Kottke is famous for comparing his voice to the flatulence of waterfowl, but of course his voice is rarely if ever the point of his songs. While Gordon has remained active as ever with Phish business and a pleasing assortment of solo and side projects, Kottke all but disappeared after 2005's Sixty Six Steps, the pair's previous collaboration, and didn't issue any music for 15 years. Leo Kottke (born September 11, 1945) is an acoustic guitarist. Listen to Noon and pre-order CD and vinyl editions here.Reuniting under the auspices of proven musical chemistry and a shared sense of whimsy, acoustic guitar hero Leo Kottke and Phish bassist Mike Gordon offer up Noon, their third outing as a duo. This marks the duo’s first collaboration since 2005’s Sixty Six Steps, and it is also Kottke’s first studio album of any kind since then. by Leo Kottke & Mike Gordon Includes unlimited streaming via the Bandcamp app, plus download in mp3, FLAC and more Your money. And it seems to meet somewhere in the middle.” ‘Cause he’s a Pachinko machine and I’m paint drying. It rings your bell, you play it into the ground and that will make something else happen. I’m always just farting around and eventually stumbling over something. “Mike likes to write a lot of stuff and then throw out the shit that doesn’t hold up the next day,” Kottke told AS. Kottke took the opportunity to elaborate on his and Gordon’s collaborative relationship. Back in the late 1960s and early ’70s, he was sometimes heard on freeform FM rock radio, but aside from a magisterial rendition of The Byrds’ Eight Miles High, and recordings made in the ’00s with Phish’s Mike Gordon, the links to rock in Kottke’s music are only vestigial roots in the blues. I just said, ‘We want you to do your thing.’” He has all these grooves that he’s working on constantly, that have all these patterns from all these different genres. A few essential cuts are missing here, mostly from the first half of his career, and there are a few oddball tracks-Kottke warbling through 'Eight Miles High' is one-but get used to it: every platter the guitarist has released seems to have a dud or three. ![]() ![]() “We have 2,000 concerts, etc., of telepathy. “Leo was really intrigued to get us together,” Gordon told American Songwriter. “Kottke is also longtime friends with Fishman and pushed for his inclusion,” read the piece. In the piece, Gordon and Kottke revealed that Phish drummer Jon Fishman played on a number of songs for the record. Kottke and Gordon discussed the new record and their collaboration with American Songwriter. The video sees Kottke delivering heartfelt vocals along with his guitar as Gordon provides the low-end bed on his Modulus bass. ![]() Mike Gordon & Leo Kottke have shared a new performance video, which showcases the duo performing The Byrds’ “Eight Miles High.” The cover appears as the second track on their recently-released album Noon.
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