ALBUMS

Rainer

Nocturnes (The Instrumentals)

(Glitterhouse GRCD 363)

The solo improvisations on bluesman Ptacek's Nocturnes were recorded out in the Sonora Desert near his Tucson home, but the absence of his voice removes any parched quality from the music. As an easy way in, he opens with a version of "Within You Without You", deconstructing the tune over a sheen of ambient sound. From there, he wanders into uncharted territory with "Curioser and Curioser" and "Suck Time", improvising and developing lines, occasionally humming a harmony or letting slip a mysterious phrase. He's the Keith Jarrett of delta blues, trailing his muse down to the crossroads.