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player ready...Nanci Griffith Other Voices/Other Rooms (Elektra) (STAR)(STAR)(STAR)(STAR)
You never know where you’ll find a national treasure these days, but any search should begin at a spot near wherever Nanci Griffith is recording. This Austin-raised magnet for enjoyable music has solidly established herself in country circles as a writer and singer and recently helped out the Chieftains on a couple of fine collaborative projects. This time around, Griffith exploits the flexibility of her angelic voice and love of folk music to showcase other artists in a “very special private folk festival.” The 17-song album includes such classics as “Boots of Spanish Leather,” with Bob Dylan on harmonica; Tom Paxton’s “Can’t Help But Wonder Where I’m Bound,” with an assist from Carolyn Hester; Woody Guthrie’s “Do Re Mi,” featuring Guy Clark; and Malvina Reynolds’ “Turn Around,” on which Chet Atkins does the pickin’. John Prine contributes some wonderfully weary harmony to his “Speed of the Sound of Loneliness,” while Arlo Guthrie steals the show on Townes Van Zandt’s “Tecumseh Valley. Listen to “Other Voices . . .” with your eyes closed and you’ll think that one of the title’s “. . . Other Rooms” is the long gone Earl of Old Town.