By PHILIP BOOTH
Published: November 5, 2000

Arkansas native Richard Leo Johnson, the guitar find of 1999, is a self-taught late bloomer whose wizardly technique, imaginative arrangements and unusual 12-string tunings - reminiscent of the late Michael Hedges - yield any number of wondrous textures and flourishes. Hearing is believing: Check out the jazz, folk, fusion and New Age soundscapes of his new Language CD an eclectic set of music featuring contributions by woodwind player Paul McCandless and bassist Glen Moore of Oregon, Govt Mule guitarist Warren Haynes and percussionist Cyro Baptista.
Johnson, briefly a Nashville resident, offers an impressionistic portrait of that city with the percussive riffs and colorful themes of Music Roe, in tandem with accordion player Andy Reinhardt. Haynes' acoustic slide guitar makes a tangy companion to Johnson's hard strumming and plucking on the intimate Freestone Peach, as well as on the more expansive Sketches of Miles.
The session leader successfully weaves stage/screen tunes with his own creations on Check to Cheek/Dance in Heaven and Happy Talk/Dream a Dream, bolstered by McCandless' work on soprano sax and oboe, respectively. The sounds of Johnson's major influences, including Leo Koltke, Jimi Hendrix, John McLaughlin and Pete Townsend, certainly resonate through his voice. But he's speaking his own language, refined, vaguely exotic and always a pleasure to hear. Grade: B+