Like a finely tuned engine, Buddy Miller"s third HighTone album has no superfluous parts, no fuel that isn"t transformed in the hottest combustion. Its power is inseparable from its economy. Drawing a straight line between blues, country, and rock & roll, Miller gets a thick, gigantic sound out of just guitar, bass, and drums; when he expands his tight arrangements, he relies judiciously on Al Perkins"s steel guitar, Tammy Rogers"s fiddle, and harmony from wife Julie Miller, Steve Earle, and Emmylou Harris. Every big backbeat, every twangy note illuminates these stinging country songs (some cowritten with Julie and Jim Lauderdale, some borrowed from Earle or Pops Staples) of haunted hearts, memories that won"t die, and love so strong it can kill you. If you"re new to Miller, think of a country Richard Thompson: an eccentric but classic-sounding guitarist; a feverish, instinctive singer; a roots-music seeker; and one of the most driven and versatile artists working in 1999. --Roy Kasten