What is the sound of Motionography? What is the sound of one guitar playing, fingers dancing, sounds splashing, sonic canvas, air art, here–gone, wooden heart made flesh, steel strings spring to life? What is the sound of one guitar laughing, of joy bouncing, strengthening, calling, inviting to the dance? What is the sound of one guitar moving, across the star field accompanied by dancers, singers, swimmers, writing rhythm, resonating life? What is the sound of movement, motion, motion, ocean, graphemic, graphology, graphic, traffic? What is the sounding of one guitar? Motionography. ____ In these days where music is increasingly created using computers and old records are plundered for loops and riffs it is encouraging to see the human touch reasserting itself on an album like this one. John Morgan's latest album Motionography is unashamedly acoustic. 100% acoustic guitar - and nothing else. Everything you hear on this superb album comes directly from the brain to the fingertips and hence to the fretboard and strings. No enhancements. It does make for a refreshing change, I can tell you. The album contains thirteen tracks, of which a dozen are self penned, the cover being the carol O Come, O Come Emmanuel. It is a difficult album to categorize, there are a lot of folk music stylings here, along with some blues and jazz licks all mixed into something that is 100% John Morgan and doesn't sound like any other guitarist. And that's a good thing really - who wants another Jimi or Eric? Another factor about this album that I like is that it almost uniformly upbeat, the tracks are almost all uptempo and happy, and of course reflect the album's theme of motion - both physically, emotionally and musically. It's a bugger of a task trying to find tracks to highlight so I won't. There is nothing here that is less than outstanding and deserving of an immediate replay. If you like acoustic music then I can't see any reason why you don't add this to your collection - Motionography is never going to be very far from your CD deck. Highly recommended! - © John Peters – The Borderland http://www.the-borderland.co.uk/ Influences from jazz, classical and world music can be heard with top-notch and creative techniques. John creates a captivating chemistry between player and listener in cadenced melodic phrases and melodies. For instance a very remarkable ballad as "O Come, O Come Emmanuel" exists and pursuits one with the enchanting simplicity of creativity. "The Return" has a phenomenal balance and structure and "Dancing Daughter" is a piece full of groove and deep basses. "Moonrise", the balancing on strings somewhere in space in a timeless atmosphere. John Morgan has reached one of his peaks delivering this unique CD with a wealth of fascinating poetry and motion in skilled art. © Henk Te Veldhuis Bridge Guitar Reviews http://www.xs4all.nl/~guitars/ I remember hearing some of John Morgan's early recordings, enjoying the melodies, and thinking, 'these are nice songs, but his playing lacks a certain depth.' Well, with "Motionography," his fourth solo independent CD, Morgan's playing has gained lots of ground, and this is a fine collection of 13 solo acoustic guitar pieces. Perhaps those two visits to Jorma Kaukonen's Fur Peace Ranch have made a difference. His time in each song is rock solid, not floating like some new acoustic music. Morgan likes to paint pictures which really reflect the title, and there is a strong connection on many songs. For example, flowing arpeggios and harmonics grace "Moonrise," and I can picture the beginning of nighttime in the evening sky. "First Flight" appropriately opens the disk, revealing a strong right hand. Many of the songs on the CD reflect an evolving jazz sense -- "Dancing Daughter" weaves in and out of fingerpicked melody lines and rhythmic chords, with a layer of staccato bass grooving the tune, while "One Step Closer to Cool" really swings. "Dance of the Stars" is a joyful, rollicking celebration of the wonder of creation in the heavens. We flow stroke for stroke with "The Swimmer". Some of his best work is on the traditional Christmas carol, "O Come, O Come, Emmanuel." Here, the longing and hope embedded in the song's lyrics find a voice with his fingers, while his improvisation between verses deepens the mood. © Kirk Albrecht www.minor7th.com