by Richard Ginell
In his second 12& album, the young master guitarist tries to transcend categories and stereotypes, dividing the album into three distinct sections. The first deals with sometimes surprising treatments of four folk tunes; &Arkansaw Traveler& is a particularly amazing tour de force that takes us to other strange places before reaching the tune. Part two is devoted to pop songs, again in varied treatments. His &Little Rock Getaway& at first bears a partial resemblance to the recording by Atkins' early influence Les Paul; &Blues in the Night& combines a jazz sensibility with various classic country licks; and Atkins gets away with a perfectly respectful treatment of &Tip Toe Through the Tulips.& Then Atkins takes a big left turn into classical music, playing Bach quite respectably (if colorlessly) on classical guitar. He switches back to electric for Provost's &Intermezzo,& Kreisler's &Schon Rosmarin,& and Chopin's &Minute Waltz,& using discreet tape echo effects and brandishing the country influence now and then. A all-encompassing record like this was the envy of every open-minded guitarslinger of the time.