Thanks for posting that. We saw the Assads and Turtle Island String Quartet playing Ecotopia this weekend. They played music from around the world, but ended...

Thanks for Tucker's article-- really on Oregon (this part anyway). He says a lot I agree with, if I also like "Friends" & "Violin" much more than him-- & ...

Reading the piece on Ralph at http://www.furious.com/perfect/ralphtowner.html my eyes tripped over this: "Unfortunately, though, recent years, which should...

I too tripped over this. Perhaps seasons of life direct every mature person into different corners of exploration and focus but, certainly, there has been no...

... I'm going to play the devil's advocate here and partly agree with Tucker, though I would have put it differently. I am not a musician and will not pass...

Having read those responses which suggest that perhaps part 2 of Mr. Tucker's piece on Towner and Oregon will clarify what he means about some recent,...

Now that is some great writing, albeit scathing... ... some ... him the ... sophomoric ... work it ... with ... fuels ... accuracy than ... he, ... from ... ...

... Agreed! It seems that Mr. Towner is suffering from an inexplicable diminishment of his powers to stop pompous fools from writing about him. May I never...

...and yet none of John's "scathing" smackdown engaged the substance and arc of Towner's career, as Tucker had the courage to do, even if he ended up saying...

Steve, I appreciated your assessment of the string of Towner solo releases and the potential "Jarrettizing" of Ralph. But when it comes to Tucker's "courage",...

A fair criticism. Though the point of my screed (and, I confess, it is that) was simply to emphasize the Tucker piece comes across as style masquerading as...

... **It seems there'll be a part 2 to the article, so maybe we'll learn the authors's concerns. I agree though that RT's playing/powers have INCREASED over...

I asked Ralph a few years ago about doing another recording with Abercrombie. He said that they did a few shows together several years back that a promoter had...

... **When I think about it, you make a good point -- the writing style here is so bad the substance becomes questionable too. There are some facts in that ...

I second John's opinion on Tucker's review of Ralph's work. Tucker writes like a pretentious student in a freshman composition course. His only hope of ...

I really hope I'm not initiating a flame war here, Steve, but I don't think Tucker stating that Ralph Towner's career has taken a downward turn reflects...

First; When I attended The University of Oregon at the time Ralph Towner was there, an English prof. crucified a student after the first few weeks for his...

If you knew Ralph back when he was a student, please share with us any insights, anecdotes, etc. Are you still in touch with him? Oh, and I believe his early...

You may well be right about his early mentor. Ralph said he lived in an attic the year he was there taking lessons. Little did I know that an attic was among...

... **Fascinating story-- thanks. By the way, I really dig Lauren-- great vocalist!!! :) Ed In a message dated 2/7/07 5:17:47 PM, newtonslawgolf@......

Thank you! She has risen to that level I mentioned before. A height to which I only reach towards and, I suspect, will never attain. I enjoyed her concert in...

I am planning on attending, and recording, the Oregon shows on 2/20 and 2/21 (Ram's Head in Annapolis and Blues Alley in DC) and put the antequated request out...