by Richard Ginell

With a roomful of crack Nashville session men, Chet Atkins' first 12-inch album is one joyful, yet sophisticated and controlled compilation of mostly standard pop and jazz tunes all decked out country-style. Some tunes, like "South," "Indiana" and "Caravan," would turn up again and again throughout Chet's career as reference points for jamming. While occasionally doubling back to the country on "Corrine, Corrina," Chet explores the possibilities of tunes like "The Birth Of The Blues," "Old Man River" and "Honeysuckle Rose" within a country framework - and with his finger-picking technique and innate musicality, he makes everything fit. The major soloists are Dale Potter, who takes his country fiddle part of the way into jazz territory, Bud Isaacs' tasty period steel guitar, and John Gordy's straight-ahead piano. On "Caravan," Gordy also breaks a bit of ground, offering what the liner credits as the first use of a celeste on a country record.