"Sean McGowan is the most promising young solo guitarist I have ever heard. His first CD, River Coffee, paints a broad, beautiful picture of his enormous virtuosity, unrelenting musicality, playful sense of humor, and remarkable knowledge of musical history. These thirteen performances show his amazing range: he captures the spirit of Thelonious Monk literally for the first time ever on solo guitar, while he effortlessly plays American fingerstyle in the tradition of Ackerman and DeGrassi; and that is only on two songs! Guitarists will weep yet laugh with delight as they try to figure out what he is doing, and history will remember Sean as one of the most important guitarists of his generation."
- Tuck Andress (Tuck & Patti)