"Some fine thoughtful songs connected to the earth, landscape, sky, creatures and people. His voice is light, clear and flows...his words and choruses carry the songs as in the excellent "First is the Earth" an anthem for preservation. Solid guitar opens "Freedom's Morning Bell" praising those escaping oppression. Violin, mandolin, bass weave in and out of the arrangements along with some harmony by Sally Barker and Jesse Burgess. Consistent quality writing, musicianship and arranging like in "Lark of Meadow," make this a pleasant, "Gathering." There's good pacing in the flow and rhythm of the songs like the upbeat, catchy "Mileposts on the Road," with strident violin and bass pushing along thoughts on the rat race and how we deal with it. This unpretentious CD will really grow on you. Recommended." Victory Review Magazine Tacoma, Washington "Singer-songwriter Jim Nelson is a poet with a love for the images of sound. Nelson sings the stories of our current times and his work is continually evolving as awareness increases of environmental and social concerns. His spiritual perspective reflects concepts of unity and respect for life and challenges the listener to think, and elicits compassion for our planet as well as expressing beauty and joy in life." Candace Rose President, Walla Walla Friends of Acoustic Music "The Gathering" highlights acoustic guitar in various open tunings with strident interjections of expressive violin, seemingly impromptu mandolin, bold string bass, a variety of harmony voices and percussion instruments. In this compilation of five years work, Jim Nelson incorporates striking images of the Blue Mountains of Washington State, the plains of North Dakota, northwest coastal forests, downtown, meadowlarks and the stare of a clock tower. Jim Nelson's various experiences from his migrant work in orchards to tree planting in clear-cuts to the social service field provide the source for lyrics that we can easily relate. His music is an exercise in visualization and transports the listener to see the world as he does through a series of lyrical snapshots framed by instrumentation and voice. In a verse from "Mileposts on the Road," he describes a character's angle of looking back on life. She said, "Age is so unworthy to be the measure of time, If you've held flowers, you hold the colors in your mind. It's what you gather, it's what you leave behind." She was sitting in her rocker, knitting something for a child, Reminiscing, turned her lips into a smile, When her rocker slowed her face was all aglow. I caught her recounting the mileposts on the road. "The Gathering" involves a high-spirited group from diverse backgrounds. Trudy Ostby on violin, Jon St.Hilaire on guitar and mandolin, Glen Morrison on stand up bass and Larry Dickerson on bazouki, accordion and piano.