Rune Gustafsson - Standards (1995)

Heavily inspired by generations of blurry-toned jazz guitar maestros such as Jimmy Raney, Jim Hall, and Tal Farlow, this Swedish artist went on to compose critically acclaimed film soundtracks as well as pick and strum. The Swedish music scene in general is where documentation of Rune Gustafsson is most prevalent, his discography on Sonet, Metronome, and other labels even including a tribute to soul genius Stevie Wonder. The guitarist began performing folk music as a young teen, apparently under considerable prodding from an uncle who was already engaged in the same kind of activity. Gustafsson had evolved to playing jazz on stages in the early '50s, his bandleaders including Bert Dahlander, Putte Wickman, Hacke Bjorksten, and Lars Gullin. When profiled in Leonard Feather's Encyclopedia of Jazz in the '70s, Gustafsson talked about his ambitions in composing and arranging concert music, a promise he certainly made good on in the ensuing years. He also expanded his instrumental arsenal for some of these projects, recording on the banjo and the celeste, among other unusual axes. His film credits include the 1992 Ingmar Bergman release with the English title of Sunday's Children. ~bio by Eugene Chadbourne