A 30-plus-year devotee of the so-called “Takoma school,” Jones has written extensively on the steel-string guitar’s leading lights: John Fahey, with whom he was friends for nearly 25 years, and Robbie Basho, who befriended Jones during the five years before his untimely death in 1986. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ With former Takoma label guitarists Peter Lang and Michael Gulezian -- along with Loren Mazzacane Connors, Henry Kaiser, Gary Lucas, Tony Conrad and others -- Jones performed at sold-out concerts honoring John Fahey, in NYC and San Francisco, shortly after Fahey’s death in 2001.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ In 2004, Jones issued -- This Is the Wind That Blows It Out. Its release was followed by a month-long tour of Europe with guitarist Jack Rose. Jones has since shared bills with Steffen Basho-Junghans, Max Ochs, Matt Valentine / Erika Elder, Paul Metzger, Peter Walker, Dredd Foole, George Stavis and many others. Along with Rose, he’s toured with Peter Lang, and with some of the best of the new breed of solo guitar upstarts: Harris Newman, Sean Smith, James Blackshaw, and Cian Nugent among others
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Jones' second album -- Against Which the Sea Continually Beats — was issued in March 2007 followed by tours of the U.S. and Canada, and Europe.
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His third album -- Barbecue Bob in Fishtown -- is out now on CD & LP (the format of the gods!). A DVD release by Jones and Jack Rose, performing solo and in tandem, is currently in production, to be released by Strange Attractors Audio House.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Reviews of This is the Wind that Blows it Out:
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ “. . . gorgeous luminous settings . . . scored across a series of open tunings, which he threads with beautiful rolling melodies, his slide work soundings like the flutter of tiny metal butterflies . . . one of the best of the recent deluge.” --David Keenan, The Wire ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
“. . . a lean and lively hound among the sheep.” --Bill Meyer, Dusted ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ “. . . done with a natural, unforced feel devoid of flash and etched in slow detail so every nuance of his vibrato and tone can be absorbed. Really, the right word is ‘felt,’ since these instrumental compositions all have genuine emotional resonance, no slight accomplishment.” --Ted Drozdowski, Boston Phoenix ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ “Jones dispenses with the modern aesthetic, and instead delves deeply into the traditional, and comes up with a beautiful, haunting, and indeed poetic album. . . .” --Jeff Fitzgerald, Aural Traditions ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ “. . . sensitivity and power that instantly communicates . . . demonstrates that his mastery of his instrument goes well beyond the speed of his fingers and lies in the investment of his mind and soul in his art." --Michael Patrick Brady, Brainwashed
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ “Fahey gathered in the blues, traditional folk, experimentalism, slack key, and a dozen other strains to birth a whole school of thinking about acoustic guitar. Jones is a worthy student, especially because he both incorporates doctrine and gently plays against it. Moments can feel downright epic (‘Sphinx Unto Curious Men’), gleeful (‘Linden Avenue Stomp’), and believably melancholy (‘Doll Hospital’). . . . Solo displays can often feel labored or too demonstrative but Jones conveys a profound pleasure in excavating this music that dispels any thoughts of scholarship or technique. This is what one person can do with one instrument and it is a beautiful thing.” --Dennis Cook, Jambase ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ “. . . in light of modern trends in fingerstyle (anti-structure exemplified by Jack Rose and Six Organs of Admittance), Jones conceives his songs with a degree of competence and sensitivity unparalleled by any of today’s musicians . . . the first non-Fahey fingerstyle album worth buying in years. . . .” --Matthew Baldwin, Monterey County Weekly
