CD REVIEW: Many moods fly through ‘Ladybug Stomp’

By Diana Nollen

Without uttering a word, Chris Proctor spins mesmerizing yarns through his award-winning fingerstyle acoustic guitar work.

“Ladybug Stomp” is his first release of new original recordings in nine years, and like its namesake, brings a smile and a dash of color as it lands indoors. (I happen to like ladybugs, so jaunty in their red coats covered with black polka dots.)

But jaunty is not the overriding theme of this collection. It covers many moods, never lingering long on one theme.

All the cuts tell a story and create vivid imagery, given a wonderful boost by Proctor's very personal liner notes. Not only does he explain each song's influence, but he also gives glimpses into his song-growing process. Some take years to germinate.

The disc opens with fiery fingerpicking on “CPSM,” no doubt the kind of musical prowess that earned the Salt Lake City resident a national fingerstyle championship in 1982.

Then he moves on to a hypnotic, reflective state with “Dream and Variations,” where uses an electronic EBow device on the strings to add a layer of wooden flute tone.

One moment he's bright and lively, as with “Beppe,” a charming song written after enjoying a four-hour anniversary dinner with Italian guitarist Beppe Gambetta and his wife, Federica. The next cut, he's contemplative with “Requiem.” Even though it's borne out of sorrow over the death of acoustic guitarist Michael Hedges in 1997 and the horrors of 9/11, this lovely piece is always dignified - never morose or funereal.

A melancholy air also flows through “Ozymandias” and “Meriwether,” which meanders through the despair that haunted Meriwether Lewis toward the end of his life.

But light and lively touches radiate through “Make it Snappy,” “The Ladybug Stomp” and “Red Zinger,” just as you'd imagine.

Proctor brings his captivating style to the CSPS stage in Cedar Rapids on Sunday night. It's your chance to see poetry in motion.

FAST TAKEInformation: www.legionarts.org/music/Proctor.htm and www.chrisproctor.com

Title: “Ladybug Stomp”

Artist: Chris Proctor

Label: Sugarhouse Records

Concert: 7 p.m. Sunday, Jan. 24, CSPS, 1103 Third St. SE, Cedar Rapids

Tickets: $11 in advance at www.iowatix.com or $15 at the door