On The Giant Who Ate Himself and Other New Works for 6 & 12 String Guitar, Glenn Jones continues to paint scenes and tell stories through his multifaceted instrumental compositions. As with 2013's My Garden State and 2016's Fleeting, Jones recorded the album in his childhood home state of New Jersey, and the songs all evoke memories of his family, friends, and various experiences throughout his life. Opener "The Giant Who Ate Himself" is a gentle, friendly tune filled with sliding notes and vibrating strings, and its title ...
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On The Giant Who Ate Himself and Other New Works for 6 & 12 String Guitar, Glenn Jones continues to paint scenes and tell stories through his multifaceted instrumental compositions. As with 2013's My Garden State and 2016's Fleeting, Jones recorded the album in his childhood home state of New Jersey, and the songs all evoke memories of his family, friends, and various experiences throughout his life. Opener "The Giant Who Ate Himself" is a gentle, friendly tune filled with sliding notes and vibrating strings, and its title is a dedication to Jones' friend and mentor, John Fahey. "From Frederick to Fredericksburg" is about a day Jones and the late Jack Rose visited Joe Bussard, one of the world's foremost collectors of folk and blues 78-rpm records and the subject of the documentary Desperate Man Blues. The song begins slow and stilted, but gradually warms up and becomes more affable. Other pieces have a similar sort of progression, such as "The Last Passenger Pigeon," which has a ponderous, nearly prog rock intro before becoming more rolling and rollicking. Amid all of the more traditional-sounding songs is the experimental mood piece "River in the Sky," a brief collage of field recordings (crickets, birds, a distant plane flying overhead) and wayward guitar strings. While some tracks, such as the bluntly titled "Everything Ends," are reserved and downcast, there are also bursts of joy, such as the album-ending "The Sunken Amusement Park." Carefully considered and uniquely transportive, The Giant Who Ate Himself is yet another sterling example of Jones' guitar mastery. ~ Paul Simpson, Rovi
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