JEFFREY GIMBLE

BRAND NEW KEY

Café Pacific Records

Jeffrey Gimble, vocals; Josh Nelson, piano; Larry Koonse, guitar’ Dan Lutz, bass; Dan Schnelle, drums.

On the opening tune of “Bye Bye Blackbird,” the arrangement is funky. It leans heavily towards R&B. Jeffrey Gimble’s distinctive voice is one I would have expected to be singing country/western.  He’s got a unique tone, a stylized vocal quality that reminds me of the country/western genre.  Also, he has a voice I would quickly recognize again.  That makes him a stylist. Larry Koonse, on guitar, makes a stunning statement during his instrumental solo as does Josh Nelson using the keyboard organ sound. Dan Schnelle blasts into the arrangement on drums, switching up the tempo to a jazzy Straight-ahead groove as vocalist Gimble jumps in with both feet.  This is a very surprising and well-produced presentation of “Bye Bye Blackbird.”

The hit record “Tryin’ Times” is a perfect vehicle for this artist to display his passionate and emotional vocals. The lyrics are profound and still relevant today. This old song, made popular by the late great Les McCann in 1966, and later by the iconic Roberta Flack back in the 1970s, is perfect for Jeffrey Gimble to interpret.  His voice is lyrically expressive. After hearing these two songs, Gimble makes me a believer. Clearly, he is a jazz singer.

Gimble begins the third tune, “I Didn’t Know What Time It Was,” a’ cappella, blowing his voice against the silence like a stream of thick smoke. After a few rubato bars, the band joins him. First Dan Lutz on bass walks beneath his vocals.  Then Nelson on piano joins with Schnelle’s drums. Gimble has a style where he slides to the notes. The mistress of that technique was Aretha Franklin.  She never missed.  However, sometimes Gimble’s slide falls short of where he meant to go. Still, he has an easy-going vocal charisma. Jeffrey Gimble gets away with reinventing melodies and sliding to and from notes.

His voice also smoothly fits into the Brazilian style of jazz.  Gimble performs “A Ra” singing in Portuguese. Larry Koonse and Josh Nelson both shine during their solos. The title tune, “Brand New Key” goes back to the funk concept, with Nelson’s organ and the drums of Schnelle slapping the groove into place. Their arrangement starts out sounding like an Earth, Wind & Fire production.

Josh Nelson’s producer talents, awesome arrangements and piano brilliance, along with the top-notch musicians in this band, make Jeffrey Gimble’s project sparkle. They are the support system and accompaniment that make this singer shine.

Reviewed by Dee Dee McNeil

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