Singer/songwriter Jim Gibson's debut CD "Something For Everyone" first appeared in 1999. Although raised in Savannah, GA, Gibson has landed in several places across the US, and this is reflected in the rather eclectic style of music that appears on the album. The element that shines through strongest, however, is blues based music from New Orleans/Louisiana.
The opening track, "Hey Joe, Where Did Sara Go?" kicks things off nicely, mixing together a light funky New Orleans beat with a smattering of zydeco. It has a nice familiar feel to it, which is backed up by "Easy Come, Easy Go" which sounds not unlike the sort of thing that Little Feat used to do so well, especially when you take into account the slide guitar. This feel also reappears later on "The More You Get, The More You Want."
Although Gibson wrote all the tunes here, the influences seem fairly clear in a few places. "California," for example, has shades of Steely Dan about it, "Angel of Mercy" suggests Ry Cooder, "Savannah" hints at Randy Newman ("Louisiana 1917") and the vocals on the soulful "Rendezvous" even call to mind Bruce Springsteen. The geographical influence of New Orleans comes over strongest in the wailing clarinet sound of the jazzy "A Few Miles Away From Home." It also features in the funky "She Don't Know" which has some very neat rolling piano.
"Something For Everyone" pretty much lives up to its title. It has blues, soul, funk and jazz, all done rather well by Jim Gibson and his cohorts. Regardless of style, the band always carries things off, and the quality of the songs is, on the whole, very good indeed. Several of the tunes on the album could quite easily be attributed to more famous artists. All in all, "Something For Everyone" is a good album that should appeal to those who
like a bit of variety with plenty of New Orleans influence.
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