Say Yes

Album Review

It's not uncommon for guitarists with facility on both electric and acoustic to use both on their projects, but Terry Wollman goes a step further on Say Yes (Sonic Images); he achieves an irresistible eclectic mix by not only alternating the basics, but by including such surprises as baritone guitar (on the graceful, chamber music-flavored ballad "Once One Moment"), the steel string, high string, and guitarron. He blends them all perfectly on the catchy but very experimental "Of All Things Most Yielding, " which intertwines flamenco lines with blues and folk, counterpointing the main melody line with percussive scrapes on the steel strings themselves. When he's not taking those types of risks, he's most content with warm, radio-friendly pieces which gain most of their punch from outside all-stars; Wollman plays harmony behind the fiery duet of saxman Gerald Albright and percussionist Luis Conte on "Survive," for instance. Then, just as things are getting a bit complacent, he slips in the unique tandem of "Buckwheat Sample" (a boogie-woogie piano solo by Joe Sample) and the blistering "Buckwheat Shuffle," where Samples' bouncy ivories and a seductive blues rhythm section provided by Abe Laboriel and John Robinson provide a backdrop for Wollman to go hog wild on the distorted electric.