If you consider yourself an expert on folk but aren't familiar with
Dave Evans, it isn't surprising. The acoustic guitarist never became well known, although not because of a lack of talent --
Evans' talent is obvious on 1974's
Sad Pig Dance, his first session for Kicking Mule. On this unaccompanied solo guitar outing (which was produced by
Stefan Grossman),
Evans' focus is instrumental folk that incorporates elements of rock and Mississippi Delta blues. The British guitarist plays with a lot of warmth and feeling on such reflective, earthy originals as "Sun and Moon," "Morocco John," and "Raining Cats and Dogs," and he is equally appealing on
Bert Jansch's "Veronica" and jazz improviser
Jimmy Giuffre's "The Train and the River," which lends itself nicely to a folk setting.
Sad Pig Dance was out of print for many years, but in 1999, Fantasy reissued it on CD and added nine bonus tracks from 1976-1978 -- four of them were originally heard on 1976's Take a Bite out of Life. Unfortunately, recording albums wasn't how
Evans would end up earning a living; the '80s and '90s found him paying the bills by building and repairing instruments in Belgium. But the fact remains:
Evans brings a lot of charisma to
Sad Pig Dance. ~ Alex Henderson