[CD Review] Zydeland by The Gumbo Gumbas

Gumbo Gumbas Zydeland

New Orleans is a state-of-mind. Every year around this time of year, Mardi Gras is an explosion of joyousness. You don’t have to travel down to Louisiana to feel it. Its spirit resides in Mercer County, in a little town called Ewing, where Joe Grillo leads The Gumbo Gumbas on a Cajun holiday all year round. The jump-blues, zydeco, rock’n’roll, jazz, folk strains and oh such soul are on full display whenever they play. Now you can even share that feeling, that zest for life, that passionate embodiment of the groove, in your own home. Zydeland has to be the feel-good album of the year so far.

Written, arranged, produced, sung and honked on his tenor sax, Grillo imbues Zydeland with a Bourbon Street beat. He’s an honorary French Quarter denizen of the night. Of course, there’s always time to also invoke a little Tom Waits on highlight “Can’t Go Back To New Orleans.” The colors mix and mingle with tuba, banjo, guitar, violin, viola, cello, trombone, accordion, piano, bass, clarinet, soprano sax, trumpet and that penetrating percolating percussion. Excuse me, I got to get on up and do the boogaloo. You just can’t sit still for this thing.

The Gumbo Gumbas Official Site

Mike Greenblatt

MIKE GREENBLATT has been writing for Goldmine magazine and New Jersey's Aquarian Weekly for more than 35 years. His writing subjects fill the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

He's interviewed Joe Cocker, Graham Nash, David Crosby, Carlos Santana, Bruce Springsteen, Paul McCartney, Johnny Cash, and members of The Rolling Stones and The Beatles. He was 18 when he attended Woodstock in 1969.

In addition to writing about music, Greenblatt has worked on publicity campaigns for The Animals, Pat Benatar, Johnny Winter, Tommy James and Richard Branson, among others. He is currently the editor of The Jersey Sound.

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