Guitarist Bobby Charles has a knack for writing and playing nice, relaxing, yet interesting melodies that  put your mind in a better place than it was before. Such is the case with his new C.D. entitled “Finding Joy.”  If you haven't found a little joy by the time you’re done listening to it, you need to listen to it again! The opening  track, entitled, “Gone Fishin'” is probably my favorite and a perfect example of what I'm talking about. It's just a sweet, memorable melody that you can't help but hum along to. As the song plays, in my mind's eye, I picture sitting by a lake somewhere, on a nice sunny day, without a care in the world.  Another favorite for the same reason is “Open Highway,” and “Dogs, Trees, and Honeybees” is one of the most relaxing acoustic guitar melodies I’ve ever heard. Next time I go to the dentist, I want this song playing as I sit in the chair. I would think that it would be hard to make an instrumental guitar album that has cohesion, yet has enough variety to be interesting, but Bobby Charles has done just that. From the exotic feel of  “Dance of the Soul,” the Celtic feel of “Bubba Riley,” the jazzy, smooth feel of “Good Trouble”, to the bluegrass tinged “Catfish Stew” that makes you want to kick up your heels. The presence of other instruments like the cello  on several tracks, along with some light percussion in just the right places help make this cd the fine production it is! 

Michelle Moliszewski