Jimmy Herring's latest album Subject To Change Without Notice (Abstract Logix) was without question one of the truely great albums of 2012. I had the pleasure of interviewing Jimmy at length recently about the new disc, and a variety of other topics as well such as being a bandleader versus a sideman, his gear, playing outside, even his days as a GIT student (where he had a certain classmate named Paul Gilbert). Read on...
Jimmy Herring: The Guitar Channel Interview
2012 was a tremendous year for progressive guitar music. Here are my favorite releases of the year, in no particular order.
Michael Landau - Organic Instrumentals
Landau's first instrumental album since 1990's Tales From The Bulge is one of my favorite guitar records in many years, let alone this one. Awesome tones, dynamic playing, deep writing. A must-have for serious guitar geeks.
Krantz took a bold new step with this album, and the results are rich and engrossing. A fantastic production filled with heady writing, and an amazing lineup of musicians.
Jimmy Herring - Subject To Change Without Notice
Awesome follow-up to 2008's Lifeboat. Highly textured with killer playing and grooves.
Alex Machacek, Raphael Preuschl, Herbert Pirker - FAT
Adventurous and dynamic with a great variety of guitar tones. Further proof that Machacek is among the most forward-thinking modern jazz composers of his generation.
Kurt Rosenwinkel - Star of Jupiter
Can't get enough of this one. Uber-deep jazz record, filled with great writing and improvisation.
Chad Smith's Bombastic Meatbats - Live Meat And Potatoes
Funky, energetic live release with killer guitar work from Jeff Kollman. Nobody grooves like the Meatbats.
Stellar recording from the OHM-meets-Umphrey's McGee supergroup. Loaded with great riffs and playing. Everybody shines here, but the twin guitar attack of Chris Poland and Jake Cinninger is particularly awesome.
Scott Henderson, Jeff Berlin, Dennis Chambers - HBC
What a band. Killer disc packed with guitar-driven trio versions of fusion classics. Henderson is amazing as always.
A 3-disc smorgasbord from keyboardist/composer David Garfield's classic west coast jazz band. Features a who's-who of the genre's luminaries, including Michael Landau.
The Aristocrats - Boing, We'll Do It Live!
Amazing live CD/DVD release with insane playing and band interplay. Guthrie Govan's guitar work is both musical and mind-blowing.
Other favorites from 2012:
Prashant Aswani - Visions
Chris Poland, Frank Catalano, Sean O'Bryan Smith, Jim Gifford - Polcat
Tribal Tech - X
Tohpati Bertiga - Riot
John McLaughlin & the 4th Dimension - Now Here This
Paul Gilbert - Vibrato
Gary Husband - Dirty & Beautiful, Vol. 2
OHM - Tsunami Jams
Ed DeGenaro - Holiday In Madras
Flying Colors
Chad Wackerman - Dreams, Nightmares and Improvisations
Chris Buck - 3 Crows
Jason Sadites - Broken
Renegade Creation - Bullet
Led Zeppelin - Celebration Day
Van Halen - A Different Kind of Truth (Ed note: \m/)
See Also:
Favorite Albums of 2011
Favorite Albums of 2010
Favorite Albums of 2009
Favorite Albums of 2008
Favorite Albums of 2007
Favorite Albums of 2006
Listening to lots of great new stuff lately...
Awesome melodic rock fusion disc. Loaded with Aswani's signature legato lines, smooth overdriven tones, and groove-heavy writing. Includes a guest appearance by Jeff Kollman.
Scott Henderson, Jeff Berlin, Dennis Chambers - HBC
Awesome, raw record with killer playing from all involved. Love the stripped-down trio arrangements of fusion classics such as "Actual Proof" and "Mysterious Traveller." A must-have for Scott Henderson fans.
John McLaughlin and the 4th Dimension - Now Here This
Another great release from the godfather of fusion and his crack quartet, the 4th Dimension. Filled with deep improvisation and band interplay. Not to mention, McLaughlin's ripping runs on "Riff Raff" prove that he is still one of the greatest pickers ever.
New three-disc release from keyboardist David Garfield's classic west coast jazz band. Includes new music, plus demos and live tracks. Features Michael Landau, Tim Pierce, James Harrah, Vinnie Colaiuta, Jimmy Johnson, Jeff Porcaro, and many others. Loaded with great playing.
Charlie Hunter and Scott Amendola - Not Getting Behind Is The New Getting Ahead
Love the vibe on this one. Loaded with deep grooves and subtle interplay between Hunter and Amendola.
Cool collection of jazz-fusion originals from producer Billy Sherwood, performed by a lengthy roster of the genre's giants. Lineup includes Steve Morse, Larry Coryell, Steve Stevens, Scott Kinsey, Chad Wackerman, Billy Cobham, Jerry Goodman, Jordan Rudess, Derek Sherinian, Jimmy Haslip, Randy Brecker, Percy Jones, and many others.
Some of the new stuff I've been digging...
Alex Machacek, Raphael Preuschl, Herbert Pirker - FAT
Tremendous new release from Machacek featuring his Fabulous Austrian Trio. Very adventurous in spots, yet more jazzy than much of his previous work. Love the variety of guitar tones on this one too.
Jimmy Herring - Subject to Change Without Notice
One of the standout records of the year. Highly musical with deep grooves; very textured and stylistically varied. Guests include Bela Fleck and Bill Evans. Look for my interview with Herring soon.
Wow! Easily Gilbert's hippest album to date. Lots of "adult chords" - almost fusion-ish at times, and very dynamic (and funky!). Loaded with great tones as well.
Dean Brown - Unfinished Business
Cool jazz-funk record with killer grooves. Great writing. Includes Marvin "Smitty" Smith, Dennis Chambers, Hadrien Feruad, Jimmy Earl, and other heavyweights.
Jimmy Herring's band came through my neck of the woods this past Friday and played a killer set at Martyrs' in Chicago to a sold out crowd. It was a great night of music, and a great hang as well - I got to see some old friends, and my dad accompanied me to the show which is always fun (I first heard Herring back in 1992 when my dad turned me on to the first Aquarium Rescue Unit album).
With Neal Fountain on bass, Jeff Sipe on drums and Matt Slocum on keys, Herring's tight quartet delivered stunning renditions of many of his originals from both his 2008 solo debut Lifeboat, and his latest release Subject to Change Without Notice. The set also featured several great covers included Zeppelin's minor blues epic "Since I've Been Loving You" (a carry-over from previous Herring tours), and a gorgeous, lyrical take on the Beatles classic "A Day in The Life."
The band arrived in Chicago finely-honed after more than a week's worth of gigs, and they left nothing in the bag as they burned from beginning to end in what was the last show of their first tour leg of the year. Whether it was labyrinthine fusion pieces like "12 Keys," or grimy blues rockers such as "Bilgewater Blues," Herring and Co. shined with taut interplay throughout the set. As a guitarist, Herring reinforced his well-deserved reputation as one of the few players on the scene today who is equally at home in both blues-rock and heady jazz situations. He's not just a jazzer who stomps on an overdrive pedal and calls it 'fusion,' nor is he a rocker faking his way through a tough set of changes - he works in these styles authentically, peeling off both impossible outside lines and hard-hitting blues phrases with ease. For this gig, Herring played a pair of humbucker-laden strats, and a way-cool black Danelectro that provided a little extra tele-like twang. His tone, as always, was to-die-for.
Herring's bandmates were no slouches either. On the old Project Z tune "Rainbow," for example, Fountain provided a great unaccompanied intro, Slocum had a killer turn on keys, and Sipe provided a blistering drum solo for the outro that brought the house down. It was at this point that my dad turned to me with a simple two word assessment - "Holy shit."
Herring's band will be back on the road in mid-September, and will be co-headlining with Victor Wooten's band in November. See them if you can.
Follow the link below for my photos of the Chicago gig.
Photos: Jimmy Herring Band - Live at Martyrs' - Chicago, IL 8/31/12
Guitarist Jimmy Herring (Widespread Panic) will release his second solo album Subject to Change Without Notice on August 21st 2012 through Abstract Logix Records. Joining Herring on the new disc will be Neal Fountain and Etienne Mbappe on Bass, Jeff Sipe and Tyler Greenwell on Drums and Matt Slocum on Piano & Keys. Special guests include Bela Fleck (Banjo), Bill Evans (Sax) and Nicky Sanders (Violin). The album will feature eight original songs plus covers of Mahavishnu Orchestra’s “Hope," The Beatles' "Within You Without You” and Jimmy McGriff’s “Miss Poopie." This will be the follow-up to Herring's 2008 solo debut Lifeboat, which was easily one of the standout releases of that year. In support of the new album, Herring will also be playing the following US dates starting this August.
UPDATE 7/29/12: New dates added
August 22 Aggie Theatre - Ft. Collins, CO
August 23 Performing Arts Center at Third St - Carbondale, CO
Augest 24 Quixotes - Denver, CO
August 25 NEDFEST 2012 - Nederland, CO
Augest 26 Ride Festival - Telluride, CO
August 29 Old Rock House - St. Louis, MO
August 31 Martyrs' - Chicago, IL
September 14 Jomeokee Music & Arts Festival - Pinnacle, NC
September 15 Jomeokee Music & Arts Festival - Pinnacle, NC
September 21 Handlebar - Greenville, SC
September 22 Variety Playhouse, Atlanta, GA
September 28 Last Concert Cafe - Houston, TX
September 29 Utopia Fest - Utopia, TX
October 19 Workplay - Birmingham, AL
October 20 Magnolia Music Fest - Live Oak, FL
Jimmy Herring Band with Victor Wooten Band - Fall 2012 Tour
November 1 Charleston Music Hall - Charleston, SC
November 2 Georgia Theatre - Athens, GA
November 3 Neighborhood Theatre - Charlotte, NC
November 4 Carolina Theatre - Durham, NC
November 7 Greenfield Lake Amphitheater - Wilmington, NC
November 8 The National - Richmond, VA
November 9 The State Theater - Falls Church, VA
November 10 Steel Jam - Bethlehem, PA
November 11 BB King Blues Club - New York, NY
November 16 Capitol Center for the Arts - Concord, NH
November 17 Buffalo State Performing Arts Center - Buffalo, NY
November 18 The Egg Hart Theatre - Albany, NY
Author Walter Kolosky has written a great review of Gary Husband's amazing new album Dirty & Beautiful Volume 2 (which features Allan Holdsworth, John McLaughlin, Wayne Krantz, Alex Machacek, Jimmy Herring, and Robin Trower among others). Check it out on Kolosky's newly updated site.
Review: Gary Husband - Dirty & Beautiful Volume 2 by Walter Kolosky
I've been listening to a TON of great new music lately. Here's what I've had in heavy rotation...
The Michael Landau Group - Organic Instrumentals
Landau's first all-instrumental album since his 1990 debut Tales From The Bulge absolutely RULES. Great writing and production, killer playing, amazing tones. Line-up includes Gary Novak, Andy Hess, Jimmy Haslip, Larry Goldings, Vinnie Colaiuta, and others.
Way-cool jazz fusion project with Chris Poland on guitar, Frank Catalano on sax, Sean O'Bryan Smith on bass, and Jim Gifford on drums. Awesome grooves and playing. Poland is a great fit.
Chad Wackerman - Dreams, Nightmares and Improvisations
Wackerman's latest features Allan Holdsworh on guitar, Jimmy Johnson on bass, and Jim Cox on keys - the same band Wackerman utilized for his 1991 solo debut Forty Reasons. Lots of group improv on this one. Holdsworth is amazing as usual.
Gary Husband - Dirty & Beautiful Volume 2
Excellent modern fusion album; a more-than-worthy follow-up to 2010's Volume 1. Amazing guest list includes Allan Holdsworth, John McLaughlin, Wayne Krantz, Alex Machacek, Jimmy Herring, Mike Stern, Robin Trower, Ray Russell and Jan Hammer.
Ed DeGenaro - Holiday In Madras
Deep fusion with a strong Indian influence. Ed drops some amazing Shawn Lane-like runs as well. Personnel includes Ric Fierabracci and Marco Minnemann among others.
Steve Weingart & Renee Jones - Dialogue
This one's been out a while but I've been digging into it more lately. Super high-quality electric jazz album with great writing and playing. Features the always-tasty Mike Miller on guitar. Steve Lukather also guests on one track.
One of the greatest fusion bands ever is back with their first new album in 12 years. Features a good balance of group improv and composition. Scott Henderson's current, more blues-oriented approach gives the band a different flavor than it had in the old days.
This won't be released until mid-April but I had the honor of writing the press release for it so I've been digging the tracks for awhile. Krantz, once again, strikes out in a new direction here with fresh take on composition and production. Line-up includes Vinnie Colaiuta, Tal Wilkenfeld, Keith Carlock, Pino Palladino, David Binney, John Patitucci, Anton Fig and many others.
