''Torched'' is the final recording guitarist Michael Hedges was working on at the time of his death, caused by a fatal car accident on December 2, 1997. It was released posthumously in 1999 on the

Windham Hill Windham Hill Records was an independent record label that specialized in instrumental acoustic music. It was founded by guitarist William Ackerman and Anne Robinson (née McGilvray) in 1976 and was popular in the 1980s and 1990s. The label was ...

label.

Reception

Music critic Jason Anderson, writing for

Allmusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databas ...

, wrote the album "In this raw format, the rock influences of Hedges' youth appear most notably in vocal phrasings that are more expressive, almost aggressive at times."

Track listing

All compositions by Michael Hedges. # "Torched" – 4:51 # "Spring Buds" – 4:20 # "Fusion of the Five Elements" – 3:59 # "Promised Land" – 3:52 # "Phoenix Fire" – 3:40 # "Dream Beach" – 3:51 # "Arrowhead" – 2:17 # "Shell Shock Venus" – 4:14 # "Ursa Major" – 3:45 # "Free Swinging Soul" – 4:19 # "Rough Wind in Oklahoma" – 4:18 # "Sapphire" – 3:48 # "Gospel of Mary/The Holy Flame" – 5:34 # "Java Man" – 3:44 # "Coda: Free Swinging Soul (Live At Lincoln Center, Fort Collins, Colorado - October 16, 1994)" – 5:29

Personnel

*Michael Hedges – acoustic guitars, bass, harp-guitar, synthesizers, alto flute, melodeon, percussion, and vocals * Michael Manring – fretless bass * David Crosby – backing vocals on "Spring Buds" * Graham Nash – backing vocals on "Spring Buds"

Production notes

*Executive producer - Hilleary Burgess *Mastered by Bernie Grundman

References

1999 albums Michael Hedges albums Windham Hill Records albums Albums with cover art by Alex Grey {{1990s-electronic-album-stub Albums published posthumously