These are Landreth's earliest known recordings, half of them made in a single afternoon 1973 when he was just 22 years old, the other half recorded in 1977. They display Landreth in the wine of his youth, looking outward for inspiration, sounding more generally Southern than uniquely Louisianan. If you are seeking an album of Louisiana music, I suggest you look elsewhere. But if it is the long-lost first album of an acknowledged slide guitar king you seek, perhaps the finest of his generation, look no further. It is in your hands.

This disc is not as overtly Louisianan as Landreth's later work, but remains as Southern as potlikker and cornpone. The music at times recalls variously the Allman Brothers, Molly Hatchet at their best, and Landreth favorites Leo Kottke and Ry Cooder, but we can hear Landreth developing that certain je ne sais quoi that is the hallmark of the true original. It's a gentle album, definitely music with which to fry up and settle in with a loved one and the Sunday paper.

Roughly half of the album dates from a single afternoon and evening's work in 1972, with the other portion dating from 1977. The early sessions include the lion's share of the solo acoustic material (all except for "Lazy Boy"), the two blues evergreens ("Prodigal Son" and "She Left Me A Mule"), and also "Lady Come Lately", "I Know You Rider", and "Lookin' For A Good Time". The later sessions, with the exception of "Lazy Boy", are covers of songs by the tragic Louisiana songwriter (and Meaux favorite) Jimmy Donley.

The disc opens with an intro of astounding acoustic fretwork that will take your breath away even before you can get from your stereo to your couch. A sizzling display of his prowess, "I Know You Rider" manages to evoke both the Allman Brothers Band and the stylings of that mad maestro of the acoustic slide, Leo Kottke. From there, the disc stays at breakneck speed for Landreth's cover of the Reverend Robert Wilkins' sermon in blues "Prodigal Son", made famous, of course, by the Stones on "Beggar's Banquet". "Country Blues" (which forms one-fifth of a tasty quintet of mostly solo acoustic blues-based material including "Sunrise",

"Don't Cry For Me", "Lazy Boy" and "M'Sippi Blues") is reflective and achingly beautiful.

These solo pieces run the gamut from Ry Cooder-ish gutbucket blues and ragtime to stylings almost classical, sometimes in the same song, and showcase the gentler side of Landreth already familiar to fans of his 1992 release "Outward Bound". Staying in this gentle vein, next we hear the folk-funk rave-up "Lady Come Lately" which rollicks along on congas and some nifty riffing from Landreth's acoustic.

Warm and engaging and with an Allmanesque feel, the song sounds fresh and timeless (as indeed does much of this album). Landreth's band gets a workout on the blues standard "She Left Me A Mule" - watch out for some hot harp and even hotter mandolin on this one.

Jimmy Donley's eponymous dedication to his wife, "Forever Lillie Mae", from its wafting intro onwards, proves itself to be a radio-friendly lost classic of mellow southern rock. The guitar work here stuns once more, the percussive notes of Landreth's solos cascade off the ear-walls like showers of tuneful hail. "That's The Way It's Gonna Be" is a tender Donley heartbreak ballad, unfortunately lacking a guitar solo. "Good Enough For Me" once more enlivens the proceedings. Featuring perhaps the album's catchiest melody, this contagious rocker percolates along nicely. Landreth's guitar is positively bubbly.

Next Sonny packs up his pick-up(s) and heads west for Texas on Donley's "Rise Shining". This nifty shuffle is a favorite of mine, picked cleanly and economically by bassist Dave Ranson on lead guitar, with Landreth contributing a suave Little Walter-inspired rhythm part. Another Donley ballad, "Ain't Gonna Worry", follows. The interplay of acoustic slide and piano calls to mind "Let It Bleed" at times. "Lazy Boy" (reprised later) is a gutbucket acoustic guitar duet, redolent of whiskey and frying hush puppies. "The Only One" is a no-holds-barred rocker featuring Landreth's trademark percussive picking, here in its infancy. "Think It Over" and "You're Why I'm So Lonely" are down-home forays into Donley's Swamp Pop, while "Lookin' For A Good Time" is perhaps the one number in this collection that best represents the essence of Landreth's native Lafayette, lyrically if not stylistically.