1 	Downhill Sleighride
2 	Christmas Rule
3 	What Child Is This?
4 	Christmas Blues
5 	Journey Of The Three Wise Men
6 	Baby Boy
7 	You're Still Standing
8 	Silent Night
9 	Holiday Marmalade
10 	Holiday Segue

Acoustic Guitar, Electric Guitar, Baritone Guitar, Backing Vocals, Bells [Sleigh] – Michael Falzarano
Acoustic Guitar, Electric Guitar, Keyboards, Vocals – Jorma Kaukonen
Backing Vocals – Vanessa Lillian
Bass, Keyboards, Backing Vocals – Fred Bogert
Drums – Chris Munson, Wayne Killius 

Christmas With Jorma Kaukonen is a collection of folk-rock Christmas songs written and performed by Kaukonen and his musical partner Michael Falzarano. These original numbers should appeal to Kaukonen's fans, but may also extend past that to other folk-rock listeners. Curious buyers may want to take a chance on this album, few Christmas albums contain as many original songs as this one does. ---Bradley Torreano, AllMusic Review

This is one of those real funky Christmas albums that works because of its nontraditional approach; place it alongside your Leon Redbone and "Austin Rhythm and Blues Christmas" holiday CDs.

Jorma Kaukonen, best known as guitarist for Jefferson Airplane and Hot Tuna, has always been more attuned to the blues than rock, and this new Christmas album reflects that – from the opening acoustic blues of "Downhill Sleigh Ride" to the rocking Delta mud of "Christmas Blues."

Nontraditional it may be, but it's still very much in the vein of the Christmas spirit – perfect for sitting in front of a low fire with a few friends and a warming beverage, chasing through holiday carols with some blues thrown in for leavening.

The highlight is "Christmas Rule," a hilarious, romping blues about Santa's sleigh getting shot down by a too-high Christmas Eve fire, with the not-so-jolly bearded one showing up at the front door in a foul mood demanding the keys to Jorma's pickup in order to finish his deliveries.

Hey – can't do the traditional thing? Treat yourself and get this album. It may be the best Christmas present you ever give yourself. ---Jim Trageser, trageser.com

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1 Been So Long 3:56 
2 There's a Bright Side Somewhere 2:59 
3 Cracks in the Finish 3:29 
4 Another Man Done a Full Go Round 3:37 
5 Trouble in Mind 3:24 						play
6 Izze's Lullaby 3:32 
7 More Than My Old Guitar 3:43 
8 Nashville Blues 3:22 						play
9 A Walk with Friends 4:32 
10 Operator 3:47 
11 Preachin' on the Old Campground 3:47 
12 River of Time 2:56 
13 Simpler Than I Thought 6:09 

Larry Campbell - Dobro, Fiddle, Guitar, Mandolin, Percussion, Pedal Steel, Producer, Cittern 
Justin Guip - Drums 
Levon Helm - Drums 
Jorma Kaukonen - Guitar, Vocals 
Barry Mitterhoff - Banjo, Mandolin, Guitar (Tenor) 
Lincoln Schleifer - Bass 
Teresa Williams - Vocals

Whether he's singing an original song or covering a gem like the Rev. Gary Davis' "There's A Bright Side Somewhere," Kaukonen's bright acoustic guitar picking and warm vocals breathe life and vitality into the material. On River of Time, Kaukonen performs the timeless and the timely, an invigorating mix of inspired originality and traditional songs.

There's a lot to like on River of Time. Kaukonen's reading of Roy Book Binder's "Another Man Done A Full Go Around," which adds Larry Campbell on guitar to flesh out the arrangement, lends an irreverent atmosphere to the song's Southern-fried vibe. Mississippi John Hurt's "Preachin' On The Old Camp Ground," with Teresa Williams' gorgeous backing vocals, is a faithful recreation of the song's old-timey, country-gospel roots. With Kaukonen's subtle, filigree fretwork accompanied by shards of banjo and mandolin, the song takes on a positively spiritual air.

Kaukonen's originals are just as smart and heartfelt as his choice of covers. The title track is a relatively upbeat number with reminiscent lyrics, a throwback sound, and the singer's lofty vocals. With a barebones arrangement and scraps of mournful fiddle, the song is a welcome recreation of Delta-styled folk-blues. "Cracks In The Finish" is a menacing swamp-blues slider with a roots-rock undercurrent, not dissimilar to some of Sonny Landreth's best work. --- Reverend Keith A. Gordon, blues.about.com

Jorma Kaukonen's revival of his partnership with Jack Casady of Hot Tuna over the last decade has also inspired him as a solo musician. The guitarist/vocalist/composer has produced the Grammy-nominated Blue Country Heart (Columbia, 2002) as well as the splendid Stars in my Crown (Red House, 2007). River of Time is an even more heartfelt and sympathetic collaboration.

The melancholy melody and heartrending lyrics of Hot Tuna's vintage "Been So Long" sets the tone for the CD in its crystal-clear acoustics. Kaukonen and producer/accompanist Larry Campbell expand upon that sound immediately with "There's A Bright Side Somewhere," a resolute statement of optimism couched in bright mandolin and simple drum work.

The blues has always been at the heart of Kaukonen's best music, even when he performed as lead guitarist for Jefferson Airplane, and its tart texture, as well as the storytelling element of the genre, surfaces in the worldly-wise "Cracks in the Finish." Campbell graces that cut with fiddle, while "Another Man Done a Full Go-Round" is an acoustic guitar duet, the jaunty gait of which reaches full flow when Kaukonen and Campbell interact.

The pace of the album becomes a full swagger on "Trouble in Mind," when the two combine with mandolinist Barry Mitterhof, a regular partner of Kaukonen's in recent years, as well as that of former The Band drummer, Levon Helm. Traditional tunes have their own intrinsic warmth, but the cozy confines of Helm's Woodstock barn studio, this recording's site of operations, solidify a truly fraternal feel to the ensemble's work.

Add "Izze's Lullaby" to the list of notable instrumentals in the Kaukonen canon, along with "Embryonic Journey" and "Water Song." A tribute to the artist's young daughter, the gentle dance of the melody and its intertwining rhythm meshes with extra strings to emphasis its tenderness. "A Walk with Friends" radiates a similar tranquility to which the title song and "Simpler Than I Thought" also allude, particularly when reinforced by Campbell's warm steel guitar.

A witty take on "More Than My Old Guitar" features Teresa Williams' sweet-toned voice, appearing even more prominently in harmony with Kaukonen on "Nashville Blues." The simplicity of such arrangements on River of Time belies their intricate musicality because the musicianship is inspired and unaffected by any grandstanding. ---Doug Collette, allaboutjazz.com

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  1)   Genesis
  2)   I'll Be All Right
  3)   Song For The North Star
  4)   I'll Let You Know Before I Leave
  5)   Flying Clouds
  6)   Another Man Done Gone
  7)   I Am The Light of this World
  8)   Police Dog Blues
  9)   Blue Prelude
 10)  Sweet Hawaiian Sunshine				play
 11)  Hamar Promenade
 12)  Lord Have Mercy
 13)  No Mail Today
 14)  Midnight In Milpitas					play
 15) Barrier 

Jorma Kaukonen - vocals & guitar
Tom Hobson - vocals & acoustic guitar
Gene Tortora - dobro
Mischa Myers - violin
Arthur Krebiel - french horn
Melinda Ross - cello
Thomas Heimberg – viola

By 1974, Jefferson Airplane guitarist Jorma Kaukonen had already started on his own path with his blues-rock side project, Hot Tuna, but with the Airplane's final flight behind him, he moved definitively beyond electrified psychedelic rock with his first solo album, QUAH. Most of the album is just Jorma and his acoustic guitar, and while this sparse format is ostensibly similar to some of the later Hot Tuna releases, it focuses much more on folk-tinged singer-songwriter balladry than on the country blues favored by Tuna. Those familiar with Jorma's Airplane ballads, such as "Good Shepherd," will recognize the sensibility at work here. Of course, there are some tracks where Jorma showcases his mastery of blues fingerpicking, and even some of the most overtly folkie tracks bear a bluesy tinge, but on the whole, QUAH is of a piece with the troubadour movement that was still all the rage in the mid-'70s. ---cduniverse

Jorma Kaukonen's first solo album remains one of the crowning achievements in his distinguished musical career. First released in 1974, Quah drew on the same folk and blues influences that powered his Hot Tuna project, but did so with a gentler, more delicate touch. Produced by his Hot Tuna partner Jack Casady, the album mostly features just Jorma and his deft fingerpicking, although three songs feature tasteful string-section overdubs. The opening "Genesis," a poignant ode to his failing marriage (recorded on Valentine's Day), is perhaps his most touching original composition, while another original, "Flying Clouds," is a graceful melody as far from acid rock as one can imagine. There are also two uplifting covers of his biggest influence, Rev. Gary Davis. Originally, Quah was supposed to be a full collaboration with Tom Hobson, whom Jorma describes as a "quirky roots performer." Hobson was apparently too quirky for the suits at RCA, since only two of his contributions survived the original cut; though always considered a bit odd by Jorma fans, Hobson's songs have over time acquired a certain charm. The 2003 reissue adds four unreleased bonus cuts: two Hobson vocals, an instrumental duet, and a solo instrumental by Kaukonen. Those who associate Jorma Kaukonen with more jam-oriented projects may be surprised by just how lovely and enchanting Quah is. ---Marc Greilsamer

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1. Broken Highway - 5:11
2. Too Many Years - 3:59
3. Radical Sleep - 4:13
4. Killing Time In The Crystal City - 6:13
5. Ice Age - 5:48
6. Walking Blues - 3:36
7. Death Don't Have No Mercy - 6:37
8. Too Hot To Handle - 5:00

Jorma Kaukonen – acoustic guitar, vocals

On his first Relix album, Magic, Kaukonen was captured live reprising some of his best-known songs on acoustic guitar. On this followup acoustic release, he turns in a studio collection including some new songs and a few more remakes, among them "Death Don't Have No Mercy." The result doesn't match his solo acoustic debut, which Relix would license from RCA and reissue in 1987, but it reconfirms his guitar abilities, and new songs such as "Too Many Years" are welcome additions to his repertoire. ---William Ruhlman, allmusic.com

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