Coming from a strong musical family, it’s no surprise that Gideon King went on to collaborate with the biggest names in the industry such as John Scofield (who worked alongside legends Miles Davis and Herbie Hancock), James Genus, whose a member of the Saturday Night Band and the man behind Bayou Soul, Marc Broussard.
The New York born and raised producer and composer called upon these guys, plus a whole spectrum of the finest established and upcoming musicians to pull together his latest ten track effort, “City Blog”. Judging from his past collaborations, my intuition tells me that King’s project is going to be a jazz affair…
…And I was right (well, to be honest, it doesn’t take a psychic to work that out!) The album kicks off with a real classy and toe-curling composition, “City Blog”. The leading title track, feature a buttery rich sound of classic jazz and satisfying soul, with unexpected bursts of the gritty electric guitar riffs, giving the production a gutsy rock feel. A sweet presence of the piano follows, offering some lightness to what can be described as Downtempo jazz in “Down” which features Broussard’s rich and slight baritone vocals perfectly washing over the arrangements.
Unexpected genres make a pleasant entry in the album. “What Say You” interrupts the continuous jazz flow with its heart-tugging ambient pop with first-class folk-inspired vocals that has a ring of Anita Baker. Seventh offering, “Glide” features a prominent(ish) electric guitar, giving the recording a light Americana feel, blending with hints and jazz and pop.
Coming near to the end, “Just Play” is a real jazzy affair with the duet adding pure opulence to the track.
To sum of “City Blog” album, it would be simply this: GOOD MUSIC that oozes pure class and will go down very well with anyone who’s a die-hard lover of jazz in any variation.
