"Graham Wardrop is living proof that musical genres are simply inventions of convenience for the record companies, radio station programme directors and us, the buying public. To musicians of this class they are, simply, there to be ignored. His, what can only be described as Musical Gymnastics, from the first note, was breathtaking... His virtuosity as well as his love for the instrument was evident. Graham played for well over an hour, his infectious enthusiasm causing the audience to completely forget about the time."
Graham Lauder, South Waikato News

"Graham can really make a guitar sing... displaying a virtuosity which is quite astounding... his music is layers of sound which build into a feast of listening"
Nelson Evening Mail

"High Standards took 18 months to record and incorporates tunes that audiences request at his solo concerts - the haunting 'Cavatina' (Deer Hunter), the '60s top seller 'Classical Gas' (without strings), Don Mclean's 'Vincent' with highly effective harmonics, a knockout arrangement of Luiz Bonfa's 'Black Orpheus', and three Wardrop original pieces, 'The Dunstan', 'Sleepy Moon', and the funky 'Commuting', which Graham performed in his warm-up set for Michael Crawford's New Zealand tour last October.
This guitar magician lives and breathes his instrument, spending about 200 hours fashioning an acoustic homebuilt with delicate inlays of mother-of-pearl or paua shell, or guesting at Festivals of Guitar with other fretboard fanatics, such as Leo Kottke and his Sydney colleague Tommy Emmanuel.
This album of 13 tunes is the most challenging recording he has attempted, because it's solo guitar, no room for mistakes, no other instruments to hide behind, and some of the tracks were recorded 50 or 60 times to reach those 'High Standards'. This is acoustic artistry at its best."
Wayne Mowat, NZ Trucking