Here are twelve songs from 1926 through 1973, that shaped his world and through which he has chosen to present his first ever guitar record.

Michael calls these arrangements “renderings,” which in visual art is “an accurate reproduction of light-and-shadow.” With great attention to the details of the harmony, his instrumental renderings of these classic hit songs remain meticulously faithful to the melodies, painting the familiar lyrics in the imagination of the listener.

This is accomplished through Michael’s masterful fingerstyle guitar (which is like classical guitar with a hipster groove on steel strings), in spirited arrangements with Chicago jazz and chamber musicians — double bass, drum set, vibes, violin, and clarinet. The crowning touch of the CD is that five of the songs feature one of America’s greatest living violinists, Darol Anger—who made his mark with the original David Grisman Quintet, and The Turtle Island String Quartet.

The first song on the record is Al Green’s Let’s Stay Together