NCD-206 Swanee - The Music of Stephen Foster

 “For those interested in American music, this is required listening.”
–The New York Post

“...these performances are some of the best recorded versions of Stephen Foster’s eternal melodies.  For that reason alone, ‘Swanee’ richly deserves to be included in any serious collection of American music.”–Bluegrass Unlimited

“This is not only the best tribute to Foster’s music that I have ever heard, it is a strong and engaging piece of Americana in its own right.” –Charles Wolfe

For several years, Joe Weed has been recording some of the most intelligent, masterful acoustic music to come out of the South Bay, from his Highland Studio nestled deep in the Santa Cruz Mountains.

This time around, Weed, a masterful performer on guitar, mandolin and fiddle, has mined another source of unique Americana: '60s instrumentals. Weed's inventive, witty arrangements work so well that you can hardly believe most of these tunes were really written with electric guitar in mind. Booker T and the MGs' "Green Onions" gets a fine reworking...Weed's version of Santo and Johnny's "Sleepwalk" captures the dreamy feel of the original. Percussionist Craven...really gets to show his chops on the Surfaris classic, "Wipeout."

Weed's previous releases "Waltz of the Whippoorwill," "American Portrait," and "Prairie Lullaby," were graceful interpretations of music's Western tradition that included a measure of bluegrass and old-timey music, as well.
--San Jose Mercury News

Surf Birds: THE VULTURES

Led by Los Gatos musician Joe Weed, these Vultures are top-notch bluegrass and progressive acoustic musicians who mix genres with typical perfection and a dash of humor.

With all these serious players, it comes as no surprise that the music is played near-flawlessly. Grisman's mandolin is exquisitely fragile and Buffalo's harmonica wails are so tonally perfect that it's easy to not recognize it as a harmonica.

The concept of covering old surf tunes in a bluegrass style succeeds to the point it makes you wonder why nobody tried it before.

Any confusion between the Vultures and the Ventures is purely intentional.
--Santa Cruz Sentinel

What the cover proclaims: "All the bedtime hits lovingly played on guitar, harmonica, fiddle and dobro"- just about says it. Having triumphed in many actual field tests, this charming instrumental collection is a simple and melodic enough to do that essential nighty-night job.

Yet, by once again engaging an all star cast including Norton Buffalo, Todd Phillips, Bryan Bowers and Rob Ickes, whose adroit playing within the inventive, subtle arrangements truly shines, Weed keeps serious listeners and players-- even dedicated non-kid types-- beguiled by the chestnuts to the last track.
--Paul Hostetter

Prairie Lullaby is a wonderful collection of relaxing but decidedly not soporific instrumental versions of old familiar songs. The surprising use of harmonica played by the redoubtable Norton Buffalo blends with the ever tasteful guitar and mandolin of Joe Weed to make for 45 minutes of aural delight. Rob Ickes' dobro playing smoothly fills out the sonic palette. I like Prairie Lullaby quite a bit. I was really happy to see the notes with all the composers' credits and dates.
--Leigh Hill, KUSP FM, Santa Cruz, CA, host of The Pataphysical Farm

NCD-202 American Portrait

From his guitar joyride down "Highway One" to the eccentric and beguiling "Sliding Down Mt. Rushmore" to a serene "Prairie Waltz," Joe Weed's new CD, American Portrait, showcases his canny musical travelog through a vast personal landscape of images and imagination. Covering eleven musical locales (even Hawaii gets a "Pineapple Rag,") each piece is a tapestry in its own right.

This musician's musician--known to cognescenti for years as a fiddle wizard--fronts his new collection of elegant, brainy originals as much on guitar as on is more customary instruments, the fiddle and mandolin. It's a rare bird that can even think of tunes like these, much less play them and produce and arrange the album as well.

Though a master of all string instruments and therefore quite capable of multitracking them all himself, he's again enlisted David Grisman's eminently capable mandolin and Todd Phillips' superb bass playing, both gentlemen having also graced his landmark 1987 release, Waltz of the Whippoorwill. Combining the languid dobro of Nashville studio ace Rob Ickes, a remarkably ... melodious Norton Buffalo on harmonica, augmented at times by cello, recorder, flute, accordion, dulcimer and some very graceful touches of percussion, each tune's chromatic and compositional appeal stands fresh and distinct. Under his own adroit arrangements, Weed's clever and fanciful compositions become at times almost orchestral. Though the tunes always beam through, this suite is no superpicker's jam session--it's certainly lively, but a little more, shall we say, civilized than that.

Acknowledging obvious inspiration from his longtime pals Grisman and especially Tiny Moore (in whose band he played for many years)--not to mention '30's Cuban rhumba bands, vivid mariachi, Southern old time fiddle, touches of Aaron Copland, Tex-czech polka, cowboy campfire songs and, once again, the simple sounds of the natural environment, Joe Weed's album couldn't be more varied or lush. It sounds like an old familiar friend, yet no one ever put things together quite like this to make such a sound.
--Paul Hostetter, for Acoustic Guitar magazine

NCD-201 The Waltz of the Whippoorwill

"Some sweet, sweet acoustic dream. If this music came through your kitchen window it'd make rainbows"
--Darol Anger

"A marvelous concept, wonderful music and superb musicianship. One of the most listenable records I've heard in years!"
--Jim Hatlo, Frets Magazine

A beautiful album! A masterpiece!"
--Tiny Moore

...Weed pulls it off with flair...all acoustic pieces, featuring Weed's rich fiddle tone and sprightly mandolin. Especially high flying is his uptempo duet with Grisman on "Western Kingbird." Excellent production and recording, and some adventurous harmonies and good humor ("Chickadee Polka" and "Carolina Wren Rag"), help make this an enjoyable record.
-Mark Hanson, Frets Magazine, August, 1988