Jorma Kaukonen: River of Time

Copy at Case Memorial Library
Eric R. Danton wrote in his Hartford Courant blog Sound Check: "After playing for 45 years with Jefferson Airplane, Hot Tuna and as a solo artist, Kaukonen ought to know what's he doing by now. Still, it's usually a pleasant surprise when an act of his vintage proves he's still got it as convincingly as Kaukonen does on 'River of Time.' It's a gentle record, full of blues and folk tunes that showcase Kaukonen's considerable skill on acoustic guitar. He plays a slow, elegiac part alongside mournfully sweet violin on 'A Walk With Friends,' and picks out notes as clean and refreshing as a spring breeze on the instrumental 'Izze's Lullaby.' The lyrics on his originals tend toward maudlin reminiscences of youth, which is fair enough — his youth was more interesting than most, though 'grizzled veteran' might have made for more interesting material. Kaukonen fares better in that respect on the covers. He takes a jaunty spin through the Rev. Gary Davis' deceptively bittersweet 'There's A Bright Side Somewhere' and injects an understated twang into Merle Haggard's 'More Than My Old Guitar'" ("CD Review," 2/9/09).