Below are samples from "Fra the Pod O'rn,"
the latest CD from Kit Garoutte.

...and what's the reaction to this original solo acoustic guitar album?

"The focus for Garoutte these days has been on the profoundly personal and deeply unique composing style he has adopted and made into his own highly recognizable brand of instrumental music. Dubbed, New Classical Jazz Fingerstyle Guitar, Kit's compositions take you on a seemingly endless variety of rides to the furthest reaches of his muse, and always returning you home just in time for dinner."
- Gary Ogan, Sound Ground

"Kit shows his solid musicianship by seamlessly blending his influences into an original, organic sound.
It's jazz, rock and new acoustic mixed with inventive songwriting."
- Mark Orton, Tin Hat (formerly Tin Hat Trio)

To buy "Fra the Pod O'rn" in MP3 format click here

Fra the Pod O'rn
- What's that? Fra the what? Ponder the meaning of the title and gain a fuller understanding of the secret of life.
Grande Ronde
- This is the instrumental version of my song "Home Sweet Home, the Stars and You. About life's journey coming full circle -- leaving home to pursue your dreams and finding some of your dreams can only be realized through the rediscovery of home and family.
O'Pennan Culloz'd
- This song was being written when 9/11 happened. The pain and anger of that horrific event became part of the story of the music, and the misguided military response informs the rhythmic drive.
Arullo Por Los Niños
- One of the precious times in my life was sitting on the porch on several summer evenings with my little brother Joe and his two sons Joseph and Michael, dabbling on the guitar and discovering this music with them.
Red Zone
- This song evolved first from the bass line, written while I was focusing on being a bass player with the band Rainbow and getting into the jazz fusion sound. After the song was arranged for the band and we'd been performing it for some time I got into solo guitar and decided to arrange it so I could play it that way with the idea of covering melody, chords, rhythm and bass line with as little compromise to the separate parts as possible.The emotion of the song was inspired by reading about the harrowing and amazing escape of a family in their car down mountain roads as Mt. St. Helens erupted! Incredibly, they survived.
Souvenir
- My stab at writing a bebop sort of thang. I went through a number of harmonic arrangements before finding this one. It's a challenge to play but quite fun and satisfying for me.
In Love
- This song is about a temporarily lost love...so far away. Or maybe it's really about all the loves of my life.
The Point of the Loop
- This one was inspired by the book "Godel, Escher, Bach" by Douglas R. Hofstadter. Though I didn't follow everything in the book, I spent four months being inspired by it's concepts, a few of which were the catalyst and intuitive model for the song and it's arrangement.
Legacy
- I had played around with this off and on over a couple of years but it just didn't want to evolve until I went back to school. The creative approach of my instructor sparked the process (and the deadline) needed to see it through.

___________________________

Below are a few samples of songs from in-progress versions for the next CD:

"Like the love child of Michael Hedges, John McLaughlin, and Crosby, Stills and Nash. It's rare to hear guitar playing this good in a singer-songwriter context." - Mark Orton, Tin Hat (formerly Tin Hat Trio)

Bit of a Dolt
- A song with multiple interpretations of the title phrase...
Dance O' the Little Folk
- This fun tune came from exploring the DADGAD tuning and applying musical 'algorithms' to patterns of notes, fingerpicking and rhythms. A blast, and a healthy challenge to play.
Father's Day
- Written on Father's Day 2005, this song expresses something about the relationship between fathers and sons and the challenges in balancing having been, being and becoming...

More of Kit Garoutte's repertoire:

All Blues (Miles Davis)
All of Me (Simons and Marks)
America (Paul Simon)
Annie's Son (John Denver)
As Long As You Can Lie (Craig Carothers)
Blackbird (Lennon/McCartney)
The Boxer (Paul Simon)
Cecelia/Me & Julio Down By The Schoolyard (Paul Simon)
Dance With Me (Orleans - Earl Klugh arr.)
Dear Madam Barnum (XTC)
Don't Get Around Much Anymore (Duke Ellington)
Falcon Cove (Kit Garoutte)
4 + 20 (Stephen Stills)
God Will (Lyle Lovett)
Haven't We Met (Kenny Rankin)
Here On Earth (Russ Barenburg)
Home Sweet Home the Stars & You (Kit Garoutte)
Hurts So Good (J. Cougar-Mellencamp)
It Had to be You (Hayman/Forrest/Young)
Jessica (Allman Brothers)
Kathy's Song (Paul Simon)
Lil' Darlin' (Neil Hefti)
Linus & Lucy (Vince Giraldi)
Little Martha (Duane Allman/Dickie Betts)
Livin' Inside Your Love (Earl Klugh)
Love The One You're With (Stephen Stills)
Mercy, Mercy, Mercy (Joe Zawinul)
Misty (Errol Garner)
Moment's Notice (John Coltrane)
Mr. Briefcase (Ritenour/Tagg)
No Such Thing (John Mayer)
Phantom of the Footlights (Feiten/Larsen)
Put Your Life On the Line (Kit Garoutte)
Satin Doll (Duke Ellington)
Stormy Monday (T.Bone Walker)
Tears in Heaven (Clapton/Jennings)
The Water is Wide (Trad.)
Wave (Antonio Carlos Jobim)
What's Going On? (Marvin Gaye)
When Sunny Gets Blue (Fisher/Melin)
Why, Georgia? (John Mayer)