Songs for Luca, from Iona's Open Sky label, was conceived by Debbie and (Iona co-founder) Dave Bainbridge as a tool to fund the fulfilling of their dream--helping their son Luca overcome challenges presented by autism.

No less than 20 artists donated tracks to make up an eclectic mix of 26 songs on this double CD set. Several of the tracks come from artists in the "Iona family", and almost half of the songs are comprised of previously unreleased material.

As might be expected, having numerous tracks from Iona members and alumni such as David Fitzgerald, Troy Donockley, Dave Bainbridge, Joanne Hogg, Nick Beggs, Frank van Essen, Terl Bryant, and Adrian Snell are bound to give the collection a mostly cohesive sound, especially when combined with songs from past collaborators Eden's Bridge and Moya Brennan.

Nevertheless, there are a few surprises from artists like Peter Fairclough Group (jazz), The Flower Kings (art rock?), Mae McKenna (traditional Celtic), Jeff Johnson (new age), Karnataka (progressive rock), and Julie Tippetts (vocal weirdness). Though several of my favorite artists can be found on this collection, I found Karnataka, a band I was previously unfamiliar with, to be a great new discovery. (Bad news: Karnataka recently disbanded. Good news: That will make it easier to collect all their albums, if you don't dilly-dally.)

With the exception of a couple of oddball tracks that detract somewhat from the album's continuity, there are many excellent tracks in this collection, and it will serve as a great introduction to several fine artists.

Songs for Luca can be purchased at Iona's website.