Calcutta Chronicles: Indian Slide-Guitar Odyssey

Album review

Every so often albums like this come along, serving as timely reminders that it's the musicians, not the instruments, that make different styles of music. Debashish Bhattacharya has long been an iconoclast and innovator, using not only slide guitar in his unique take on Indian music, but also here a slide ukulele (you can hear it on "Sufi Bhakti," which crosses Indian and Sufi music in a thrilling and seamless manner). That he's a master of his art is a given by now, but his genius isn't just in technique, but also in feel. He's as much at home on "Rasika," which conjures up Bengali music as he is with a raga on "Maya." Perhaps the greatest triumph here, however, is "Gypsy Anandi," where you can hear Hawaii -- the home of slide guitar -- along with Andalusia and even Gypsy overtones, apt since they originated in Rajasthan. The Indian classical tradition suffuses this disc, both Hindustani and Carnatic (the two come together on "Kolkata to Kanyakumari"). The playing throughout bathes you in warmth, lulling and delicious, quite spare but never seeming empty. It's a testament to Bhattacharya's art that he brings such brilliance to bear.
© Chris Nickson /TiVo