photo: Art Fein
Skip Heller is a true musicians’ musician. Whether he’s doing exotica (Lua-O-Milo) or straight-ahead jazz (Fake Book) or producing a reissue and a new album for lounge figurehead Robert Drasnin (Voodoo 1 and Voodoo 2), the guy can do anything.
This release finds him in country mode, playing his acoustic guitar with a stripped down backing of standup bass and drums played with brushes. He’s got a few guests sitting in, like Drasnin - who plays a brilliant clarinet on Valley Blues #1 and D.J. Bonebrake on vibes among others. His singing is gentle, wistful and most heartfelt.
A bittersweet track, I Used To Love California, leads off the disc. It’s about how life in the Golden State no longer holds any appeal, since his girl has gone. Duke Ellington in Texas covers the sad final days of the swing kingpin. At My Age is a funny self-assessment, the protagonist singing about how he should possess something besides his age in life. On and on it goes, proving that Heller can do it all, and that he’s tops of the singer-songwriter game, as well as everything else he lays his hands on. Get this one or any of his releases - they are all topnotch.
Skip Heller performs at Hotel Congress on April 10, 7pm. Check out SkipHeller.com.
