Neck and Neck

Two generations of guitarists merge on this cleverly-titled album, with former Dire Straits virtuoso Mark Knopfler taking time off from scoring movies to join Chet Atkins, one of the fathers of electric guitar pickin'. And there's some mighty fine country pickin' on display here, with the duo joined by some of Nashville's all-time finest players, including the late, great Floyd Cramer, Mark O'Connor, Larry Londin, Vince Gill, and Steve Wariner. The material ranges from choice country covers (Doc Watson's "Poor Boy Blues," Patsy Cline's "Sweet Dreams") to rock 'n' roll ("Yakety Ax," a take on Boots Randolph's "Yakety Sax"), jazz (Django Reinhardt's "Tears"), a Knopfler original, and even the old standard "I'll See You in My Dreams." It sounds like they had fun, too! --Bill Holdship