Brand New Same Old Obsessions is not only the title of Justin Thompson's latest release, but it is also the perfect description for his music -- classic meets modern -- jazz meets pop, and now music lovers are meeting Justin Thompson. Oscar winning actress Marcia Gay Harden recently called him the “rowdy Harry Connick Jr” in TIME Magazine. He won Nashville’s Starving Artist Award for Best Male Artist two years in a row and his debut CD, Tasty Puddin’, was named one of Music City’s top ten CDs of the year by the Nashville Rage.
During his tenure in Nashville, he performed with Katharine Wayland (The Squirrel Nut Zippers), Mark O'Connor, The Nashville Chamber Orchestra, John Hartford, Riders in the Sky, David Grier, Buddy Spicher, Mandy Barnett, Greg Garing, Kathy Chiavola, Annie Sellick, and the Gypsy Hombres. As an Hombre, he was voted “Best Jazz Musician of Nashville” and had two best selling CDs -- Cafe Strut and Django Bells. The latter received critical acclaim from around the country including four stars from Down Beat magazine and the season’s top pick by The New York Times, The Washington Post, USA Today, and NPR’s “All Songs Considered.”
Now based out of New York City, Justin is touring venues ranging from festivals such as South By Southwest to black tie affairs including dinner parties for the former prime minister of Canada and Nashville's Swan Ball (alongside Tony Bennett) to college campuses, house concerts, and jazz clubs scattered throughout the United States.
Reviews
If you like Norah Jones, Frank Sinatra or Harry Connick Jr., you'll adore this CD. Filled with whimsical lyrics and amazing jazz melodies, Thompson is doing for jazz what Joss Stone has done for soul...modernizing it and bringing tradition into the 21st Century. With a jazz remake of Britney Spears' "Hit Me Baby" that begs to be heard, this album is nothing but listening pleasure. In "Because of You" he sings, "Because of you/I learned that love is found/By giving selflessly/And it was you who turned my life around/I only wish that you could see/I'll be holding hands someday again/Kissing lips that may be true/She'll never know the man I am/Is all because of you." He combines cool jazz vocals with hot swing guitar, making this album a classic in my book. If you like that "Sleepless in Seattle" jazz, this is a must have. Don't let the album title throw you off; just get the CD!
Rating: 5 stars (out of 5)
DiscoveringArtists.com
Former Gypsy Hombre Justin Thompson's new project finds the guitarist stepping to the mic and conjuring a Django Reinhardt-meets-Chet Baker vibe, with a little Nat King Cole thrown in for seasoning. He's developed a fine reputation for his archtop work, particularly his chunking, rapid-fire rhythm playing, but his upcoming CD shows that he's every bit as dangerous as a soloist, blending melody, chromaticism, chordal flourishes and thoughtful phrasing with great success. The biggest surprise is the ease with which Thompson steps into the front man slot, dishing up sultry, smoky laid-back vocals on self penned tunes.
Nashville Scene
Justin Thompson needn't convince anyone of his guitar credentials. The Berklee College of Music graduate played in the ethnic-swing band Gypsy Hombres, and he's also taught guitar to back-up artists for Lucinda Williams and Bonnie Raitt. He's even instructed David Grier, an accomplished bluegrass guitarist. But equally impressive is Thompson's vocal style, a Chet Baker-style whisper. Where Baker's sighs almost blew away on the breeze, Thompson's singing benefits from a corporeal urgency borrowed from the great big band crooners. There's plenty of swing on his album Tasty Puddin', driven forward by David Jellema's red-hot cornet. Plus, he achieves the seemingly impossible, making a saucy, salty jazz number out of Britney Spears' saccharine pop.
Metro Pulse (Knoxville,Tn)
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