After the Rain

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New age pianist Michael Jones found sympathetic collaborators in David Darling (cello) and Nancy Rumbel (oboe and English horn). The title track is one of Jones' most memorable and magical tunes. The piano flutters like leaves in the wind and sparkles like light breaking through the branches; Rumbel's woodwinds sing like birds while Darling's cello seems to hold the warmth of the earth, then plunks and plops like raindrops. All the tracks are this evocative of nature, its ponds and trees and seasons. Jones creates the sparkles and ripples, Rumbel adds heartfelt nobility, and Darling supports the bass with long resonant lines and also provides jaunty syncopated rhythms. While appealing upon its initial release, After the Rain remains enchanting years later after dozens of listenings.