Home » Jazz Articles » Album Review » Gerry Gibbs Thrasher Dream Trio: We're Back

Gerry Gibbs Thrasher Dream Trio: We're Back

By Dan McClenaghan
September 15, 2014
View read count

Gerry Gibbs Thrasher Dream Trio: We're Back

Drummer

Gerry Gibbs

drums
b.1964

" data-original-title="" title="">Gerry Gibbs must be in a "strike while the iron is hot" mode. Less than a year after his very successful Gerry Gibbs Thrasher Dream Trio (Whaling City Sound, 2013), featuring

Ron Carter

bass
b.1937

" data-original-title="" title="">Ron Carter on bass and

Kenny Barron

piano
b.1943

" data-original-title="" title="">Kenny Barron on piano, he has reconvened with those jazz legends for a second go around. This time, with We're Back, the trio moves away from the jazz standard format and goes after some of the classic R& B hits from the 60s and 70s.

If that sounds like a good time, it is. Jazz can take itself too seriously, but with the likes of

Stevie Wonder

vocals
b.1950

" data-original-title="" title="">Stevie Wonder's "Too High," Marvin Gaye's "What's Goin' On ," Earth, Wind and Fire's "Mighty Mighty," and The Average White Band's "Pick Up the Pieces," a good time—from these guys—is guaranteed. The tunes are familiar to anyone who came up listening to Top 40 radio in those days, and they have the staying power of classics, appealing to a younger generation with an ear for classic sounds, making We're Back a "kick back and relax and soak your ears in great melodies and cool grooves" type of experience. The fact that they're laid down with an inspired, top level jazz feeling and skill level is the bonus.

Another big difference here is the inclusion of some top flight guests: Vibraphonist

Warren Wolf

vibraphone
b.1979

" data-original-title="" title="">Warren Wolf, organist Larry Goldings and saxophonist

Steve Wilson

saxophone
b.1961

" data-original-title="" title="">Steve Wilson. Goldings adds a cool funk to the group's up-tempo take on "What's Goin' On," working alongside the buoyant pop of Warren Wolf's bright vibraphone. The pair also team up on strutting take on Stevie Wonder's "My Cherie Amour." Steve Wilson's alto sax—tart and tight—gets chased around the studio by Barron's exquisite piano on Earth, Wind and Fire's "Might Mighty," while Carter and Gibbs lay down a deep groove, and they do it again on the same group's "Fantasy."

The CD, which starts out on a high note with Stevie Wonder's "To High," keeps getting better as it rolls along. Hal David and

Burt Bacharach

composer / conductor
1928 - 2023

" data-original-title="" title="">Burt Bacharach's "I Say a Little Prayer," a smooth pop hit for

Dionne Warwick

vocals
b.1940

" data-original-title="" title="">Dionne Warwick, and a deep soul anthem from

Aretha Franklin

vocals
1942 - 2018

" data-original-title="" title="">Aretha Franklin, a gets a taste of elegance here from the trio, especially from the ever-inventive Barron; and "Pick Up the Pieces," a huge radio hit for the Average White Band, features, again, the trio showing how to rip it up at a white hot pace.

They close it with the sole non-R & B tune, a forty-four second "beatbox" version of Miles Davis "Theme."

Excellent!

Learn more about our star rating system

Track Listing

Too High; What's Going On; Where Is The Love; Reasons; Mighty Mighty; Betcha By Golly Wow; My Cherie Amour; Creepin'; Fantasy; Living For The City/Overjoyed; Brazilian Rhyme; Runnin'; I Say A Little Prayer; Pick Up the Pieces; Theme.

Personnel

Gerry Gibbs

drums

Gerry Gibbs: drums; Ron Carter: bass; Kenny Barron: piano; Warren Wolf: vibraphone (2, 6, 7, 11, 12); Larry Goldings: Hammond B-3 organ (2, 7); Steve Wilson: alto saxophyone (5, 9).

Album information

Title: We're Back | Year Released: 2014 | Record Label: Whaling City Sound

PREVIOUS / NEXT

Salif Keita at Yoshi's San Francisco
< Previous

Forward In All Directions
Next >

Support All About Jazz

All About Jazz has been a pillar of jazz since 1995, championing it as an art form and, more importantly, supporting the musicians who make it. Our enduring commitment has made "AAJ" one of the most culturally important websites of its kind, read by hundreds of thousands of fans, musicians and industry figures every month.

Go Ad Free!

To maintain our platform while developing new means to foster jazz discovery and connectivity, we need your help. You can become a sustaining member for as little as $20 and in return, we'll immediately hide those pesky ads plus provide access to future articles for a full year. This winning combination vastly improves your AAJ experience and allow us to vigorously build on the pioneering work we first started in 1995. So enjoy an ad-free AAJ experience and help us remain a positive beacon for jazz by making a donation today.