You could certainly call Dave Lionelli's piece "Acid Folk" longwinded and verbose. He has worked for about 2 years on this album in his own studio in Alameda, California. The cd is composed of 14 songs which are a mix of traditional folk, country and rock n' roll with a hint of soul as enhancer. He has been performing live shows with the Butter Band for the local population of San Francisco Bay since 2003. Dave Lionelli received his first guitar at the age of 9 and grew up in Connecticut before moving to California in 2000 where during his long musical career he shared the stage with several artists among whom figured Crosby, Stills & Nash, Santana, Elvis Costello and Steve Winwood. In between he played in 2 other bands: a funk band called Zigaboo Modeliste & The New Aahkesstra and a rock-reggae band that was called Jethro Jeremiah Band. In 2004 he introduced himself for the first time solo through a demo album "There's A First Time For Everything". "Acid Folk", which was released in 2007, is his first full-length cd and a unique opportunity to expose his talents to a broad audience. The diversity in the songs is the first thing that stands out when listening to the album. "The Gala Affair" opens the series in a modern jazzy "dress" with the presence of a striking Hammond organ where after "Condamnation" explores the horizon of country pop. Acoustic funk sounds take the upper hand in "(Stuck Inside A) Glass Cage", R&B-soul vibes fill the nicely ongoing "Be with Me" and the closing song "The Great White Wail" is modern rockabilly. "Do We Really Need It?" also leans on modern jazz and he even goes completely acoustic on the guitar in "Happy Birthday Little Brother" and "Never Bothered To Try". The big diversity might pose a small risk as the listener often does not show the same amount of interest in all the different genres that Dave Lionelli spreads on this album. But he demonstrates that he rules the genres and can write music in every category. Let this be the most important merit of "Acid Folk" and Dave Lionelli.
