Treasures From the Folk Den (2001)

Gathering up everyone from Pete Seeger to Eliza Carthy, McGuinn returns to his pre-Byrds roots on this set of unplugged folk tunes. McGuinn's voice, crystalline 12-string, and lack of sentimentality serve him well, and performances like ''John the Revelator'' with Jean Ritchie and Odetta remind you how powerful this music can be. Despite a cornball quotient (and a version of ''John Riley'' not as gothic as the one he did with the Byrds in 1966), the album is a charming drive down American back roads that are increasingly in danger of being overrun with weeds.