Grant-Lee Phillips Virginia Creeper (Cooking Vinyl COOKCD292) Having left the rockisms of Grant Lee Buffalo behind, Grant-Lee Phillips is maturing as a rustic balladeer. This is the follow-up to 2001's Mobilize, and finds Phillips surrounded by an authoritative squad of folk and country musicians who lend a quiet conviction to his songs. Phillips likes to write allusive portraits peppered with images he can wrap his warm, grainy voice around, like the slowly-rolling Far End of the Night or the feistier Calamity Jane. He proves he's capable of stretching out a narrative in the extended tale of Susanna Little, a saga of prejudice and bigotry set to old-time piano and fiddle. Phillips even makes a convincing job of Gram Parson's revered Hickory Wind, which ain't easy. -- AS

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