Steve Howe -- Time -- Review

Guitarist Steve Howe has a world of sounds at his fingertips. His eclectic career includes chart-topping success with Asia, ambitious art rock with Yes, new age adventurism with Paul Sutin, and about twenty solo albums displaying his classy and nimble fretwork. For my money, Steve Howe has to rank as one of the most consistently interesting and versatile six-stringers of our times.

You might say, there is something very timeless about Steve. He has a signature sound. His playing is very precise, but very fluid. He sounds like what the archetypal guitarist should sound like, but he sounds like no one else. Dexterous, inventive, tasteful; these are some of the adjectives I’d use to describe Steve’s style.

Steve’s musical career is now in its fifth decade, but he gives the impression – as he so often does – of being at the peak of his powers. Steve’s new solo effort, Time, is a case in point. From a guitar purist’s point of view, this has to be one of the most delectable collections of music imaginable. This is not to say that that the guitar is the only instrument featured on this record. Indeed, orchestra and keyboards figure prominently and importantly too. But each and every composition – be it original or an interpretation – seems sculpted in such a way as to reveal the haunting beauty and magic potential of the guitar.

It is hard to pick a standout track from Time. Both the arrangements and the playing are understated, but this creates the musical space for some rather sublime moments to shine through. This is particularly true with The 3rd of March, a composition written by Steve’s keyboardist collaborator Paul K. Joyce, where every note seem imbued with a rapturous beauty. The color, intonation, and phrasing Steve provides in the final bars of this gorgeous piece exemplify what artistry is all about, putting technique in the service of transcendence.

Time contains a mixture of original compositions by Steve, his son Virgil, and Paul K. Joyce; some collaborations (most notably with Paul Sutin); and a few chestnuts from the classical repertory (including pieces by Bach, Villa-Lobos, and Vivaldi). Each and every song is rewarding. Incidentally, Steve is one of the few performers from the rock genre who can convincingly cover classical pieces where notable classical guitarists like John Williams or Julian Bream have already set the standard. Steve Howe performing Bach, Villa-Lobos, or Vivaldi should delight anyone with a musical ear, as the selections on this disc demonstrate.

The music on Time seems a hybrid of classical, new age, and cinematic styles. There is a wonderfully but modest and unassuming air about the approach Steve and his collaborators take with this set. The pleasures here are subtle, but also exquisite. Steve Howe not only has a world of sound at his fingertips; he is in touch with a heavenly realm too.