Greg Brown: If I Had Known

By GRAHAM REID

(Herald rating: * * * *)

Greg Brown, a craftsman writer from Iowa (who once recorded William Blake poems), gets a fine 17-track retrospective If I Had Known of material from '80 to '96.

The additional disc is a wonderfully informal and informative 45-minute DVD bio-portrait from '93 which puts him in his rural context and includes interviews (Garrison Keillor, family members) and concert footage.

Excellent package for newcomers to this universal-regionalist.

Label: RHR/Elite