TAYLOR USED:
K14

SONG CLIPS:
Runaway Horse
28K | 56K | MP3

Five Points
28K | 56K | MP3

Dennie grew up surrounded by music, even if he was technically a late bloomer himself. His grandfather sang frequently with the Father of Bluegrass, Bill Monroe; an uncle later played banjo in Monroe's band. At one point, one of his aunts was married to a son of bluegrass tenor vocalist and guitarist Jimmy Martin. But it wasn't until after high school that Dennie first reached for a guitar, although he made up for lost time. Two years later, he was performing as a solo acoustic guitarist, and since then, has continued to cultivate an original musical voice, melding bluegrass, celtic, folk, and blues idioms into inventive contemporary arrangements, punctuated with the percussive flair of Michael Hedges.

Dennie's third solo acoustic guitar release, Just Enough, resonates with soulful levity. Despite his prodigious technique, Dennie's playing never overshadows his melodic adventures, which seem to sound both deeply familiar - as though he has tapped into our collective folk consciousness - and yet uniquely new. "There are those things that make you stop in your tracks, and think for a moment, I mean really think…" writes Denny in his liner notes, referring to the soft serenity of "Picture Wall Picture". Other tunes draw inspiration from moments of connection with friends, family, nature, and in the case of "Highland Dreams", the pursuit of an elusive dream. The beauty of Dennie's supple melodies is their openness to personal interpretation among listeners. "This is music to use for your own purpose and escape," he writes.

Just Enough was recorded in Nashville and produced by 2000 Winfield Fingerstyle champion Pete Huttlinger. Says Huttlinger in the liner notes: "…I already knew that [Dennie] had great tone and great chops, so the chance to work with him in the studio and capture that tone on tape sounded like too much fun…." Sam Bush (mandolin), Dave Pomeroy (fretless bass), and Tom Roady (percussion) masterfully complement Dennie's playing. From the ramped-up reel feel of "Runaway Horse" to the halcyon ambiance of "Crooked Stream" to the tap-and-slap/hammer-on grooves of "When a Tree Falls", Dennie's steel-string soundscapes show that a good melody deepens a song's soul.