By: John W. Patterson
his is solid, good-n-sassy jazz guitar with a melodic-bent, fusion-driven
flow. Gambale is know for his various approaches on his solo albums from
smooth melodic jazz, to jazz fusion, to real scorching, shredded rockers
and all points in-between. His playing is virtuoso, fully lyrical, phrasings
to die for, technical wizardy, sweep picking mastery, speed, grace, and
soul.
Being the critic I am, I will admit some Gambale releases just didn't
do it for me as his range of styles are wide but on this release he has
excelled, grabbing honors and creating a deeply enjoyable listen. There are
the mellow moments of ethereal chordal dream-fugues and also the fired-
up cranked-wide rippings of guitar herein. Guitar lovers take note --
whether you rock, fuse, or jazz -- Gambale will delight most all this go
round.
This release echoes the compositional bounce and joyful soul of
Gambale's 1980's era A Present For The Future, released by the
defunct Legato label. Be sure to not miss the amazing bass work by Ric
Fierabracci on each of the ten tracks. The general guitar soloing textures,
sonic fill colorings, and well-utilized riff-edge of Gambale's recent
Show Me What You Can Do is another good reference point for
you axe-heads. By the way, "Frank the Sweeper" throws in some sweet
acoustic and Sitar guitar for a total spectrum of cool.
Enjoy this "10" out of a possible 10 as I have now for many, many
listens. I have set this aside after several long intervals, only to pick it up
again and find the joy all over again. Highest of recommendations. Grab
this one. And hey, Steve Vai, thanks for letting Gambale do this one on
your label! It is top-notch, class guitar.
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