Sun Dog - David Surette

A collection of original, rootsy guitar pieces from one of New England's finest guitar players; folk/blues and rags rub shoulders with Celtic and British guitar influences; equally good for late nights and sunny mornings.

Tracks:
1. A Lot of Sir John 4:16
2. Ukulele Stomp 2:12
3. Sun Dog 6:50
4. Frog's Legs 2:20
5. Atlantic Slack Key 4:12
6. Red Bird's Song 4:47
7. Cold Rain 3:44
8. Rags LeGrand Memorial Two-Step 3:08

David Surette has become known as a consummate musician, fluent in a variety of styles and settings, including accompanist, band member, studio pro, as well as soloist. He returns to the solo guitar setting with Sun Dog, his first totally solo guitar recording since 1996's Trip to Kemper, and the first of his five solo CDs to feature all original material. Recorded in one night in February, at home, the recording was originally planned to be a rough draft of some new as well as some older guitar pieces. Yet it seemed to be one of those nights where everything was clicking, and after playing it for friends and family, it seemed that it was worth letting other folks get a chance to hear it. Mastering from Chris Magruder at Thundering Sky Studio in South Berwick put the finishing touches on the album, which consists of eight original guitar pieces. Inspiration was drawn from the RPM (Record Production Month) Challenge sponsored by Portsmouth's Wire Magazine, as well as from some of the guitar records from the 60s and 70s that influenced Surette's development as a player back in the mid-80s. "I can hear echoes of a lot of the things that have influenced me on the guitar over the years" Surette writes in the liner notes, "Kottke/Fahey tunes, Doc/Chet/Merle-style ragtime picking, country blues, British folk/baroque, and Irish and Breton stuff in DADGAD. I also left room on a few of the tunes for some off-the-cuff improv. Hopefully, when you put it all together, it sounds like me." As a soloist, Surette is nationally known as a top player of Celtic fingerstyle guitar. Yet his diverse repertoire has always included a number of original compositions, as well as blues, rags, and other traditional American roots music, all of which are very much in evidence on this recording. He has been the recipient of an Individual Artist Fellowship award from the NH State Arts Council, and in the fall of 2008 was designated a Traditional Arts Master by the Maine Arts Comission.