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Frank Gambale- Natural High (Wombat Records)
Frank Gambale- Guitar
Otmaro Ruiz- Piano
Alain Caron- Bass
Mike Shapiro- Percussion (selected tracks)
The connoisseur of sweep picking, Frank Gambale, has laid down an alternative canvass for his instrumental impressions- a drumless offering, if you please.
This isn’t a maiden album of that nature; his collaboration with Maurizio Colona was evidently drumless (and bass deprived, mind you). Similarly, Natural High isn’t an initial adventure in acoustic dominance; the critically acclaimed Thinking Out Loud was very absorbing & largely distortion-free. Naturally, Gambale’s sweep picking buffs will be repelled by this introduction but do well to judge the sage after listening to this collection of mersmerising tunes, to say the very least.
Unlike Gambale’s drive-laden tunes, the arrangements here are jazz inclined, more importantly, they will appeal to fans of easy-listening & guitar aficionados alike. Alain Caron & Otmaro Ruiz more than made up for the absence of drums, impressive are their percussive phrasings & insane doubling of Gambale’s fleet fingered passages. The touch of class is simply the intelligence of avoiding a technically introverted performance per se, memorable verses are aplenty but melody was never compromised on any occasions. The trio ensured commanding moments to highlight their technical superiorities; there was no loss of form for sure.
Natural High isn’t a professional segue in an attempt to excel on a platform which escapes critical comparison. I you are of the opinion that Frank Gambale is lethal only with a solid body electric guitar, this album will prove your predisposition futile.
