COMPOSERS: Salil Bhatt
LABELS: Northernblues
ALBUM TITLE: Doug Cox , Salil Bhatt
PERFORMER: S & VM Bhatt (guitars) etc
CATALOGUE NO: NBM0039
Doug Cox’s Slide to Freedom is a Canadian mix of blues, country and Indian slide guitar – the latter mainly from Salil Bhatt, son of the instrument’s pioneer Vishwa Mohan Bhatt (himself guesting here), who has followed his family tradition by inventing his own version.
The satvik veena – three melody strings, five drones and 12 for sympathetic vibrations – delves into lower registers than the mohan veena, and both share with the American genres a capacity for note-bending.
There are mainly Indian tracks and some real blues, but the fizziest have each musician bringing his own quirks and turns of phrase to material that bridges the gaps.
