Subtlety is key to guitarist/composer George Petit’s Patachou! (Alcazar Productions ALC 128; 55:17). His needling, light-touch play proves disarming in the many diverse settings represented here-from the creeping “Blues for Charlie Haden” to the lithely percussive Latin jam “juan-les-pins,” each piece is given space to develop and grow with its dynamics. The Vermont-based guitarist, who composes and produces here, knows the value of careful layering, evidenced in the atmospheric “En Marchant,” grounded in funky bass and suspenseful, fluttering Hammond organ, and “Where Have You Been,” with up-front, bustling saxophones lending a happy, wistful feel.
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