Richard J Baysinger Project - 68 Late Cornucopia Drive
	Released: 2001 Label: Fossil Records Cat. No.: Total Time: 41:07
	Reviewed by: Stephanie Sollow, November 2003 Given the label that released this work by The Richard J Baysinger Project, Fossil Records, you'd expect that this would be guitar rock album. Guitar is certainly present, but the compositions are more fully realized than that. That is, rather than guitar being the focal point and the other instruments being window dressing, each instrument has a role to play. That is the way it should be, of course. That doesn't mean necessarily, however, that the potential of each piece is fully realized, only that Baysinger has written compositions not wankfests. The Project consists of Baysinger only on all instruments plus drum programming. The music style ranges from guitar rock (the AOR-with-a-hint-of-Rush-like title track that kicks things off; the groovy "It Is What It Is;" the fusiony "Vista Del La Noche") to mellow guitar / keyboard excursions ("Once In A Lifetime") to contemporary instrumental (the balladic, very synthy "To My Love"). It's the rockier and guitar based instrumentals that are the warmer of the album's 9 pieces, the synth pieces being cold and sterile. "Lady Eve" is a electro-acoustic guitar duet, where the electro part alternates with the keyboards… it is a nice, mellow statement that, if it were accompanied by visuals, would certainly include aerial shots of lush, green rainforests and waterfalls. The other mellow piece that would likely also have some visuals accompanying it (I think of those nature videos from Narada, Miramar, etc.) is "Forever On," which ends the album. Baysinger's guitar sings in a somewhat melancholy and wistful way – and yet it is also very epic. One can picture (also), a lone guitarist among that same lush greenery playing, eyes closed. "Temporal Blades" is a track that stands out for its interesting arrangement, the title track being other. This has a bit of a tango feel to it, mixing guitar, synth and piano like accents. It is a little dry production and tone-wise, however. The crashing percussion sounds having an overly shimmery, silvery tone. This same tone is fairly much true about the whole album. Baysinger doesn't pull any surprises here on 68 Late Cornucopia Drive, the music itself having an air of familiarity about it. It makes it an overall a very nice release, but, for the most part, Baysinger is playing it safe. And this makes it also a very generic release of a particular type – and yet isn't, thankfully, merely a guitar wank album. Rating: 3.5/5 More about 68 Late Cornucopia Drive: Track Listing: 68 Late Cornucopia Drive (4:36) / It Is What It Is (4:45) / To My Love (4:31) / Lady Eve (3:04) / Vista Del La Noche (5:08) / Storm Shadows (5:30) / Once In A Lifetime (5:07) / Temporal Blades (5:10) / Forever On (4:36) Musicians: Richard Baysinger – guitar, bass, synths, drum programming Contact: Email: highdesertsound@hotmail.com Discography 68 Late Cornucopia Drive (2001)
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