Givin Up on Free Jazz by The Everymen NEUF 2024

Tracks:
Blast Off!
Girl Named Lou, Pt. 2, A
Spain
Fingers Crossed
Another Thing to Lose
All I Need is You
NJHC
Aint Good Enough for You
Ballad of Sarin, The
Thousand Miles, A
Izzy

Performer Notes:

• Personnel: Mike V (vocals, guitar); Catherine Herrick (vocals); Geoff Morrissey (guitar); Scott Zillitto (saxophone); Will Hoffman (trumpet); Thomas Barrett (keyboards); Stephen Chopek (drums, percussion); Jake Fiedler (drums); Thomas Unish, The Columbia University Gospel Choir, A.C. Newman (background vocals).
• Audio Mixer: John Angello.
• Recording information: Dumbo Studios, Brooklyn; Gul Studios At Streets, Passaic, NJ; Seaside Lounge, Brooklyn.
• Photographer: Brian Last.
• Jazz is one of the few genres that doesnt figure into the Everymens sophomore album, Givin Up on Free Jazz, though they sure make a spirited run through rock & roll of the 50s and 60s, R&B, jump blues, soul, hard rock, punk, and a few spaces in between that might require testing in order to accurately determine their origin. What comes through most clearly on Givin Up on Free Jazz is that the Everymen are a show band, an act eager to please their audience with sweat, swagger, and passion, and on this albums best moments, like the Springsteen-esque "A Girl Named Lou, Pt. 2," the 50s-styled "Fingers Crossed," and the soul-shot "Aint Good Enough for You," you can all but feel the musicians dancing, pumping their fists, and tossing their axes around as they work the crowd. In an age of studied cool and polished choreography, the Everymens commitment to old-fashioned entertainment fused with a 21st energy and crunch is admirable and winning, and it doesnt hurt one bit that bandleader Mike V. (aka Michael Venutolo-Mantovani) is also a solid songwriter. Here, Mike V. fuses old-school sounds with personal, direct-from-the-heart lyrics that play like musings from a Jersey guy who has ideas of his own but honors the traditions and obsessions of his musical forefathers (many of whom get namechecked in "NJHC," from Frank Sinatra to Glenn Danzig). Mikes band can deliver the goods, too, especially co-lead vocalist Catherine Herrick, drummers Jake Fiedler and Stephen Chopek, and horn men Will Hoffman and Scott Zillitto, all of whom can punch and swing with authority, and the production hits the right balance between polish and rowdy enthusiasm. Maybe the Everymen dont get free jazz, but they know rock & roll very well indeed, and on Givin Up on Free Jazz, theyre determined to make folks feel good, and they succeed admirably. ~ Mark Deming

Producer: Mike V

Format: CD (1 Disc); Stereo

Country: USA

Studio/Live: Studio

Release Date: 20 May, 2014

Label: Ejrc