Tag: Jared Gold

www.nippertown.com

DAVID GIBSON
“End of the Tunnel”
(Posi-Tone)

One of the downsides of Posi-Tone being the biggest purveyor of trad jazz today is that most of their releases are so earnest, they make your teeth hurt. There are exceptions, though: The wild free-jazz collective Tarbaby, Orrin Evans’ monumental Captain Black Big Band and this tasty re-imagining of Hammond B3-flavored party jazz. David Gibson is one of those trombone players who refuses to let the trumpet players have all the fun, so he brought together a tight little unit and had some fun of his own. The group sets a grinning tone early with Herbie Hancock’s laughing “Blind Man, Blind Man,” and all the originals that follow take their cue from that sound. Gibson’s “Sunday Morning” and keyboardist Jared Gold’s “Preachin’” have that perfect mix of blues and gospel that made Jimmy Smith records so special, “Wasabi” brings the funk in easy take-home portions, and the urgent title track has the same adrenaline rush you get from driving through the Holland Tunnel at 3am with no brakes and no traffic. Gold’s own efforts as a leader have been nothing to write home about, but put him in a sideman situation where all he has to do is bring it, and he brings the B3 into the 21st century. Throw in brutal alto sax from Julius Tolentino and Quincy Davis’ rampant drums, and there’s a happening at “End of the Tunnel.”

jazztimes.com

www.freep.com

Trombonist David Gibson’s “End of the Tunnel” ( * *, Positone) sneaks up on you with insinuating, rather than flashy, funk grooves and sinewy textures created by a lean quartet of trombone, alto sax, organ and drums. Gibson’s evocative phrasing, which eschews speedy barrages of notes in favor of concentrated punches of melody and rhythm that get under the skin, is also a key. So are the varied sonic atmospheres produced by organist Jared Gold.

Gibson’s approach often winks at Grachan Moncur III from the ’60s Blue Note days, an impression furthered by the pairing with Julius Tolentino’s alto sax, since Moncur ran with alto great Jackie McLean back in the day. The album even goes out with a revival of the McLean-Moncur anthem “Blue Rondo.” I wish the original material were stronger, but to the band’s credit, the music retains a contemporary bite rather than treading on nostalgia.

Mark Stryker/Detroit Free Press

thejazzword.blogspot.com

New York-based trombonist David Gibson digs deep into the soulful side of 1960s-era jazz with End of the Tunnel his second recording for Posi-Tone Records. With the aid of organist and label mate Jared Gold, Gibson delivers an enticing quartet set of funk grooves and driving swing.

Gibson seems to thrive on patience, shaping his solos with sparse ornamentation, waiting for the opportune moment to fill space with a meaningful barrage. This take-your-time approach works exceptionally well on the dirty funk of Herbie Hancock’s “Blind Man, Blind Man” and Gibson’s own gospel-like composition “Sunday Morning.” Refreshingly unafraid to swing hard, in the style of an elder statesmen like Slide Hampton, Gibson shines on Gold’s medium toe-tapper “Splat.”

The Oklahoma native contributes a handful of his own tunes, from the down-home funk of “Wasabi,” to the unrelenting dirge of “A Place of Our Own,” to the hypnotic intensity of “The In-Whim,” featuring drummer Quincy Davis’ keen awareness.

The front-line sound of trombone and alto saxophone, handled by the fiery Julius Tolentino, is a somewhat uncommon combination creating thick, dark textures. Combined with the organ, this brings unmistakable warmth to the proceedings, giving attention to the strength of the ensemble over any one individual. There is, however, no shortage of exceptional blowing throughout.

lucidculture.wordpress.com

Soulful Late-Night Grooves from David Gibson

Out in the country, trombonist David Gibson’s new cd End of the Tunnel would be a late-night back porch album. Here in New York, it’s more of a fire-escape record, a gorgeously catchy mix of oldschool Memphis organ grooves along with some more straight-up jazz tracks which are just as tuneful if somewhat more tricky rhythmically. It’s party music, some of it with a slinky wee-hours feel, the rest somewhat more boisterous and adventurous. Along with Gibson, the band here is Julius Tolentino on alto sax, Jared Gold on organ and Quincy Davis on drums.

The opening track, Herbie Hancock’s Blind Man, Blind Man sets the stage with a sultry southern soul feel, Gibson playing it low and sweet, the organ stepping hard on the end of his solo to drive it home. Considerably harder-hitting, the aptly titled Wasabi is a classic Booker T. Jones style groove that makes a launching pad for three different personalities: sax soaring overhead, trombone down and dirty and the organ lighting it up at the end with some blissfully atmospheric layers. The monster hit here is Sunday Morning, a brilliantly simple ensemble piece – it’s the great lost theme to the Hairspray movie. The title track is the first of the jazz numbers, absolutely hypnotic with shapeshifting overlays of sax, organ and trombone, Gold moving methodically through an endless procession of chord changes, Gibson bringing it out of the maze and back to earth. Pensive and unresolved beneath its warmhearted hooks, A Place of Our Own never really finds itself because the drums keep it from setting down roots. Splat, by Gold, works a cool Memphis theme more expansively than any of the classic 60s soul bands did; by contrast, The In-Whim moves toward psychedelia, riding a series of rises and falls over a deceptively simple tune.

They go back to the soul music with Preachin’, Gibson slyly refusing to cede ground to anyone else until he’s almost invisible, Gold taking it up robust and warmly optimistic. The closing cut is Jackie McLean’s Blue Rondo, a good fit with its blend of jazz and soul, bustling sax and drum breaks. It’s one of the great party albums (or post-party albums) of the summer of 2011, out now on Posi-Tone.