Owen Kortz Trio

There are quite a few moments on the Owen Kortz Trio's self-titled five-song EP in which Kortz — who teaches music at the University of Colorado Denver — sounds remarkably similar to James Taylor, both in tone and phrasing. Kortz's voice blends well with those of singer Rich Sletvold and guitarist/vocalist Tad Lusk, both of whom offer up rich harmonies throughout the disc, especially on the Trio's fairly faithful renderings of Pure Prairie League's "Amie" and Men at Work's "Down Under." All of the tracks are stripped down to just two acoustic guitars and three voices, the centerpiece on each is Kortz's voice, and the three-part harmonies work quite well in a Crosby, Stills & Nash sort of way. Clearly, there are still dudes out there who fully appreciate the folk and singer-songwriter era of the '60s and '70s.