At the crossroads of funk, soul, country, and blues we find Steve Gregory’s delicate debut Frolic. A collection of lighter-than-air instrumentals that blend extraordinary tightness with talent, vision, and pure musical joy, Frolic is an utter pleasure to experience, from start to the very end.
Steve Gregory’s well-hidden legacy as a session musician who extensively toured with such legendary acts as Frankie Valli, Michael Buble, and Ray Charles gets readily exposed with his star-studded debut album Frolic. Joined by keyboardist Jeff Babko (Jimmy Kimmel, Sheryl Crow), bassist Eric Sittner (Patti Austin), and drummer, Ray Brinker (Joe Cocker), Steve’s layered, soulful, and tasteful guitars populate 12 of the most uniformly well-thought out and well-executed instrumental compositions in my recent memory. A consistently sweet and engaging listen that is gorgeously produced, Frolic contains thick and luscious mixes, and instrumental tones that are expertly crafted. Lightly crunched-out guitars, snappy snares and booming kicks, a buoyant and playful collection of upright and electric basses, and a blessed wealth of organs and keyboards, all coalescing to form some of the liveliest jams I’ve heard for a really long time.
The music.. well, with the glorious caliber of the musicians who contributed to this project, I’m glad to report that the music is as good as you’d expect. Enjoyable compositions with ample space for fiery solos and instrumental flexing, and a lush display of raw musical talent and chemistry. The pieces that live on Frolic can be divided into three rough categories. We have the melodic, structured, and composed pieces such as ‘August 2’ and ‘December 18’, and lighthearted, earthy soul and jazz cuts such as ‘New Inspiration’ and ‘After School’. Manic, electrifying jams like ‘Hey, Marvin’ and ‘Tell Me What You Feel’, are some of the album’s best offerings for sure.
Among the album’s many highlights to discuss is the distinct introduction ‘Hey, Marvin’. Welcoming listeners with some of the album’s tightest and most soulful keys and guitar interplay, ‘Hey, Marvin’ is a capable introduction to the ensemble’s refined sound and sophisticated musical identity. A piece that sounds timeless and universally enjoyable, ‘Hey, Marvin’ sits somewhere between being a thoughtful and involved composition and an everyman’s everyday jingle. A spot of unbounded fun that paves the way for a pretty and gloriously varied collection of tunes. ‘New Inspiration’ follows, bringing the energy down a couple of notches for a sound that is gentler and smoother. Gone are the tight, fast beats and funky licks, to be replaced by a restrained rhythm section, airy keys, and some truly tasteful guitar playing. ‘New Inspiration’ is easily one of my personal favorites on Frolic.
‘August 2’ is defined by a quirky, descending riff, a brooding, stuttering backbeat, and an unforgettable guitar motif. The song’s mysterious sound provokes an image of adventure and an untamed wilderness. The restraint practiced by Brinker’s drumming is what makes this cut what it is. ‘August 2’ is one of the album’s best executed performances. ‘Tell Me What You Feel’ is a spritely jam session full to the brim with blues bar-worthy licks and solos that seem to only grow larger with each passing section. An exquisite selection of organ sounds, a bass part that can, and will, melt paint off the walls, by sheer tightness not volume, a spotless drum performance, and an expert guitarist laying down some sweet hot blues on top of all of that. The keys solo that populates most of the piece’s latter half is one of the album’s most hair-raising sections. An extremely effective piece. ‘December 18’ introduces one more descending motif and an inventive rhythm that is defined by more sweet and masterful restraint. A twin to ‘August 2’ in many ways, this piece is home to one of the album’s hairiest and most sublime solos from Gregory.
Pop soul tendencies reach an all-album high on ‘The Moment’. With its muffled snare and minimal bass, this soulful love ballad would be screaming for some flirty words from the honeyed mouth of Jason Mraz or John Mayer if it wasn’t for Gregory’s equally sugary and effective licks and melodic lines. A little soothing cut that does an amazing job in bringing the energy level down to a manageable one in anticipation of what’s coming next. “After School’ is a glorious display of the ensemble’s jazz talent. The walking bass line on Sittner’s upright, characterful chord stabs and roomy-sounding solos from Babko’s tin-pan alley piano, the colorful and chromatics-heavy jazz licks on Gregory’s airy and lightly overdriven guitar, sounding perfectly jazzy, all supported by the backbone that is Brinker’s masterful drumming. ‘After School’ is a clear standout on Frolic.
Starting the album’s last quarter is one of its grooviest and most melancholic offerings. ‘Smooth It Out’ is another distinctive cut that features the album’s tightest bass and drum sections, a challenging beat, some of the album’s dreamiest keyboard sounds, and the album’s least guitar-based sound. That is of course until the album’s heaviest solo kicks in in the piece’s final legs, all distorted and manic, building up to an abrupt ending that could sound a bit jarring. Perhaps the oddest artistic choice on the whole record, perhaps even the only one, the ending to ‘Smooth It Out’ left me feeling shaken and unsure of what to feel. I just wanted to know how the album’s wildest solo ended. Luckily, the ensemble follows this extreme cliffhanger with the appropriately titled ‘Thread Of Hope’, one of the album’s nicest and mellowest offerings. This non-challenging cut is only here to calm the senses and soothe the nerves with its steady pace, minimal bass, tremolo-ed keyboards, and open-faced guitar licks.
Frolic is easily among the best things I’ve heard all year. A collection of instrumentals that left me satisfied and comforted, Steve Gregory and company are an efficient bunch that are in perfect control of their craft. Their musicianship is thoroughly lovely and the professionalism that they bring with them knows no bound. An album of space left intentionally by each member of the group to be adequately filled by input from others, an album of experienced performances that give each composition exactly what it needs, no more and no less, an album of beautiful sounds that are as beautifully put together as they are beautifully played, recorded, and produced, Frolic is a thoroughly pleasant experience.
