Gypsy Kyss

The James Walsh Gypsy Band is kind of the outfit to go to if you're looking for some blue-eyed soul but, just like Ned Doheny and his sublime reissue on Numero, the band never fully came out of its shell and they were limited to just one album on RCA Victor, 1998's self-tiled LP…until now. I've Got The Feelin' was recorded a year later, in 1979, at the legendary Muscle Shoal Studios, but it never made it out onto the shelves apart from a seriously limited CDR run. Norway's Preservation has thankfully done the right thing by pressing it up on vinyl, and the opening title track is as just as wonderful as the first time we heard - a true soul masterpiece with a clear LA influence. "Looks Like You Got Down In Love" is a funkier, more soulful version of Credence at their deepest, while other highlights include the supremely majestic "It's Over Now", and the tear-jerking "Alabama Eyes". It's a road album, the sort you want to really take in properly. Recommended.

James Carter celebrated 2000 by putting out two vastly different albums at the same time, an amazing concession from a major label for a jazz artist who doesn't sell in Kenny G-like proportions. Chasin' the Gypsy, as you might guess, is an homage to Django Reinhardt, whose music Carter used to dig on Detroit radio when he was a teenager, but Carter doesn't take the predictable reverent path in paying his respects. He rummages through his closet and pulls out a rarely used bass saxophone on three cuts - the bumpy sounds are often comic yet a comfortable fit for his antic style - and even tries out an F mezzo sax on the exotically relaxed "Oriental Shuffle." Back on tenor, Carter's slippery playing often doesn't hesitate to approach the outside; he keeps his sense of humor and his individual quirks intact…

Nostalgia is a powerful element in our world, especially when it comes to music. People love to hear sounds that are already similar to them, but also add something new into the mix to define that band or artist and keep people coming back for more. That’s why bands like GRETA VAN FLEET and the whole New Wave Of Classic Rock are so popular. With that and the sound making its way back into the mainstream, it only makes sense to join in and create more modern classic rock for old and new fans to enjoy, as Tennessee’s NAKED GYPSY QUEENS have done with their latest EP, Georgiana…

A versatile singer with a warm voice and a quietly swinging style, Connie Evingson explores the usually instrumental Gypsy jazz style during this highly enjoyable project. On various selections she is joined by either Pearl Django, the Clearwater Hot Club, or the Parisota Hot Club, quartets that are sometimes augmented by accordion, vibes, drums, and/or percussion. She performs swing standards, Susannah McCorkle's lyrics to Django Reinhardt's "Nuages," and her own words to "Django's Premonition" (originally known as "Anouman"). The strong repertoire, the instrumental colors, and Evingson's voice are three reasons that Gypsy in My Soul is highly recommended.