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A supporting cast that includes players known for their work with Shemekia Copeland and Duke Robillard speaks to the talent of singer-guitarist Dave Gross. The young New Jerseyan covers the blues spectrum, with swinging nods to T-Bone Walker and Charlie Christian rounding out funky, contemporary blues and New Orleans sounds. Standout originals are “Mess On My Plate,” the moody “Movin’ On Down the Line,” the slow blues “Make Things Right,” and the stone country “Once Had a Girl.” Producer Robillard’s influence on Gross’ dynamics and impeccable guitar work is apparent, and Take the Gamble (SwingNation 388006) is highly recommended for Robillard’s fans.
No shortage of press-material with this release, which is the second CD from the 21-year-old singer/guitarist Dave Gross. He is praised for his playing by Duke Robillard (who appears on this album, and in whose studio it was recorded) Hubert Sumlin, Debbie Davies and Popa Chubby! I almost felt surplus to requirements! The album’s PR says it’s “Blues & Swing”, but there is much more swing than Blues (although it is all top class stuff). 9 of the 13 tracks are originals and the playing is absolutely top notch and varied – covering everything from ‘50s doo-wop, to swing and chicken pickin’ – with some nice swamp Blues. This guy is so damned talented, it makes me sick! (Actually I am really, really jealous). In fairness, track 5 is an instrumental that was written to showcase the band, and everybody gets a chance to shine – Dave Gross is savvy enough to take not quite a back seat, but doesn’t make the mistake of hogging the limelight, when he so obviously could. If you like Bill Wyman’s Rhythm Kings, you are gonna love this!
Crossroads Magazine #48
"The Sons of Swing Blues"
This charming, young man is making a name for himself in the world of swing blues with his breakthrough sophomore album, which heralds the arrival of a new talent. With a style that draws from the forties and that takes inspiration from T-Bone Walker, Collins, Charlie Christian, Jimmy Vaughan and many others, Dave Gross literally powers his way through a range of songs, mostly compositions, where this lover of subtle guitars and stinging brass is committed to getting legs moving for an intense, swaying swing party. Gross is good, very good, extraordinarily good, almost obscenely; such is his divine, nimble and elegant mastery of the six-string instrument. His lyrics are creative and the melody is clear and pitch-perfect. Dave Gross is building up a considerable reputation for himself over just a short period of time, attracting attention from the best in swing blues, some of them legends… The Grand Duke, Duke Robillard, his mentor, is there, mastering his art and his guitar whilst playing the director by producing this record. He is a great admirer of this young prodigy. He's not the only one. Another player, more often associated with the rock side of blues, has joined the formidable team: Arthur Neilson uses the neck of his rhythm guitar to great effect for several killer riffs. Even more surprising is his appearance on the bass guitar for the majority of the tracks, something never known of him before! Other renowned swing blues legends also joined the line-up, notably the inescapable Doug James on the saxophone and the equally brilliant Dennis Gruenling on the harmonica! With so many giants of the blues collaborating, does this mean this young, new talent is a budding genius? This opus opens with an incredible take on ‘She Walk Right In’ by Gatemouth Brown, an excessively jumpy and torrid homage to the mischievous Louisiana-Texan artist. This sound intensifies over the following tracks, largely influenced by jazz, swing, blues and R&B, and echoing the carnal sounds of California, the South and Chicago. It embodies pleasures from genres injected with subtle references, all whilst being divinely played. Take a risk and bank on Dave Gross: take the gamble!
Place next to CDs by Duke Robillard
Francis Rateau
Crossroads Magazine
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BluesWax Rating 9
Reader Rating 9
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He’ll Carry The Torch (06/28/06)
Dave Gross' new album on Swing Nation Records, Take The Gamble, opens with Clarence "Gatemouth" Brown's "She Walks Right In," which becomes here an homage to one of Gross' major guitar influences. On the next several tracks, the young guitarist's musical sensibilities are defined. As the author of nine of the 13 tracks included on this set, he can write his own material while still sounding true to Swing or Blues ("I forgot to leave you, baby, and now it's too late/I'm stuck here, pretty mama, with a mess on my plate").
"I'm leavin', baby, working my way back home," Gross sings while Dona Oxford's piano solo reveals her musical maturity. Gross' vocal work is outstanding. Producer and second guitarist Duke Robillard plays on only three cuts on the album, and it's difficult to tell the two guitarists apart. Awesome guitar lines augment Gross' vocal work on "I'm So Hungry Blues," one of the album's best tunes featuring Al Basile's right-on-the-money cornet and Doug "Mr. Low" James' perfect sax runs.
James' sax opens "Swingin' On All Six" as Dennis Gruenling takes one of his world-class harmonica solos. Gruenling's tone is exquisite, as is Gross' guitar solo. "Walkin' in a Daze," authored by "Hot Lips" Page, features killer riffs from Basile, James, and Gross. "That's All You Get," possibly the best track on the album, is Gross' take on Blues, complete with a biting Albert Collins-style guitar solo. Gross and company cover classics including T-Bone Walker's "I Know Your Wig Is Gone" and the Henry Creamer/Turner Layton-penned "After You've Gone." On the latter, the Duke handles the rhythm as Gross delivers his best vocal performance on the album. And although the listener might be fooled into thinking that the guitar solo is delivered by Robillard, it's actually pure Gross!
"Movin' On Down the Line," another Blues original, features Dona Oxford's inspired piano and another brilliant guitar solo from Gross. The guitar work on "Once Had A Girl" is as Country as Danny Gatton. The deep Blues of "Make Things Right" closes the album. Each tune shows another unique side of Dave Gross. This album will hold up to repeated listening; in fact, it is one of the year's best releases. Let's hope that Dave Gross will continue to carry the torch.
Richard Ludmerer is a contributing editor at BluesWax
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Writer Rating 9
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(07/09/06)
Like Nick Curran, Dave Gross is building a formidable reputation as a purveyor of blues and R&B that is rooted mainly in the 40s and 50s. Blessed with a natural blues voice and a compelling guitar technique, Gross brings all of his talents to bear on ‘Take The Gamble’, which was produced by Duke Robillard at “Duke’s Mood Room”, and which features Duke himself on three tracks.
The cast of musicians assembled to back Gross on this set makes impressive reading – artists like Doug James (baritone and tenor sax), Al Basile (cornet), Dennis Gruenling (harp), Dońa Oxford (piano and organ), Arthur Neilson (upright bass) and Mark Texeira (drums) will be familiar names to most of the readers of this magazine, who will recognize that their musical roots are grounded in the eras that Gross is influenced and inspired by.
Gross sets out his stall from track one, opening with a jumping rendition of Gatemouth Brown’s ‘She Walks Right In’, a call and response slab of R&B that displays Gross’s powerhouse vocals and fat-toned guitar underpinned by rocking piano, jazz inflected harp and a wild baritone sax solo from James. The only other covers on this set are the jazz inflected big band R&B of “Hot Lips” Page’s ‘Walkin’ In A Daze” replete with hot tenor sax and superb jazz cornet from Al Basile – a swinging workout on T-Bone’s ‘I Know Your Wig Is Gone’ featuring hip vocals, hot tenor and more superb cornet – and the 30’s styled swing of ‘After You’ve Gone’ which captures the era to perfection with more of Gross’s hip vocals and Basile’s wonderful cornet.
The other nine songs are all Gross originals, that segue seamlessly with the classic covers already discussed. ‘Mess On My Plate’ visits New Orleans courtesy of Oxford’s Fess inspired piano, James’ pumping baritone sax and baleful horn charts, Gross’s vocals and guitar mixing elements of T-Bone Walker and Johnny “Guitar” Watson – Watson again coming to mind on ‘I’m Leavin’ Baby’ with it’s strident guitar and cascading piano, the highlight being Gross and Duke trading licks as the number builds to a finale. ‘I’m So Hungry Blues’ has a smokey T-Bone Feel – T-Bone again coming to mind on ‘Make Things Right’, although this time it is laced with a downhome swampy feel
‘Once Had A Girl’ is a frantic rocker with a country edge – ‘You Ain’t Playin’ Me No More’ has country blues roots that are enhanced by rolling piano, resigned vocals and melancholy guitar – whilst ‘Swingin’ On All Six’ does exactly that.
I can only paraphrase the title of this set and say “Take A Gamble” on Dave Gross – I can guarantee that you won’t be disappointed. (www.DaveGrossBand.com)
In 2004 "You Don't Love Me" was the first independent release of Dave Gross, an album where Gross, (guitar and vocals) along with AJ Hager (bass) and Matt Mousseau (drums), in ten tracks that where recorded live in about 45 minutes, emerged as a torch carrier of the electric blues. At the time of this album, Gross was only nineteen years old, which made the achievement all the more remarkable. Strongly aimed guitar licks with lived through song brings Gross’s talent to light.
His influences can be found amongst all large guitarists such as: T-Bone Walker, Albert Collins, Arthur Neilson, Albert King, Freddie King, BB King, Danny Gatton, Charlie Christian, Clarence "Gatemouth" Brown, Duke Robillard, Tiny Grimes, Django Reinhardt and Anson Funderburgh.
Other than that he has already shared the stage with , among others, Duke Robillard, Popa Chubby, Debbie Davies, Arthur Neilson (guitarist of Shemekia Copeland), AJ Hager (bassist of Debbie Davies), Big Ed Sullivan, Joe Taino and Christine Santelli. Guitar master Popa Chubby had the following to say over him: "In every town I go there is a kid with a guitar who is out to cut heads. Usually upon hearing them I think to myself 'what a wanker.' When I heard Dave my ears stood up and I thought 'man this kid can play!' I love it when someone half my age and size makes me work twice as hard. Look out for Dave Gross! Popa Chubby in general plays the better blues and blues-rock. But Dave Gross also belongs to this last genre with a beautiful open structure within the numbers being played with the result that every song can be followed easily and does not change into a roar of sound. The variation with here and there rather catchy pieces ("Good Fool Is Hard To Find" and the wonderful closing song "I'm Just Your Fool"), the sensitive pieces ("Evil Hearted Woman", the title track "You Don't Love Me" and "The Moon is Full") and the hefty pieces (the opener "Okie Dokie Stomp", "Danny's Boogie" and "Don't Leave Me Baby") makes this a diverse record that will provide many hours of listening pleasure.
In the mean time it is now two years later, and Gross knows how to surprise us, with the successor "Take the Gamble", with no one less than the legendary Duke Robillard as producer. He has since been on the stage with Hubert Sumlin, Duke Robillard, Popa Chubby, Debbie Davies, Bettye LaVette, Arthur Neilson, Sax Gordon, Doug "Mr. Low" James, Nick Moss, Willie Kent, Dennis Gruenling & Jumptime, Big Ed Sullivan, Joe Taino, Christine Santelli, Stephane Wrembel and Doña Oxford.
With his new album "Take The Gamble" I realize that, from now on, he belongs to the top of all blues guitarists. After his debut he can, for this album, count on friends like Duke Robillard (guitar), Doug James (baritone & tenor sax), Al Basile (trumpet), Dennis Gruenling (harmonica), Doña Oxford (piano), Arthur Neilson (upright bass), AJ Hager (fender bass), Matt Mousseau and Mark Teixeira at the drums.
There are nine originals and four covers on the album. The CD starts with one of these covers, namely a version of Clarence 'Gatemouth' Browns "She Walks Right In", a number that immediately makes a mood for dancing. Fortunately you can catch your breath with the second number, "Mess On My Plate", that immediately gives a New Orleans ambiance, complete with those wonderful blazers. The rest of the record is in the same style as we are used to with him: bluesy and subtle like only Dave Gross can do it. His love for the original blues and jazz masters are possibly even more obvious on this record, the combination of the blues from the 40's and 50's with the swing from the 30's and 40's shows us once again what talent Dave Gross has.
He has great technique, and he also plays with a lot of feeling. Gross’s specific charm: he never turns to rough and rumbling hammering on the guitar. He plays the blues fresh, it can be distinguished note for note, and at the same time he swings like an animal. Fans know enough and the curiosity of lovers of better guitar play have now been stirred.
Dave Gross, Take the Gamble (Swingnation) (07/13/06)
The youthful exuberance of this 21 year old guitar slinger drives the swinging blues that fill this marvelous CD. Songs by Gate and T-Bone set the character for the many originals. Rich horn arrangements and a solid rhythm section are as central to the sound as Mr. Gross' tasty guitar licks. If he sounds like a protégé of Duke Robillard, it's probably because Mr. Robillard produced the album in his Mood Room studio, and the studio band features some of his old bandmates, as well as relative newcomers like Dennis Gruenling and Dona Oxford. My picks include two covers: Gatemouth Brown's She Walks Right In (1), and T-Bone Walker's I Know Your Wig is Gone (9). But I'm more focused on the originals, including the swinging instrumental Swinging on All Six (5) and the more contemporary That's All You Get (7). Don't miss this.
Nicholas de Leeuw, WVKR 91.3 FM
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