The Waiting Game reviewed by Rick Davis

The Waiting Game

Jimmy Dasher

Melodic Undertone Production Group LLC.

www.jimmydasher.com

12 Tracks

It would be difficult to categorize the music on Jimmy Dasher's debut release The Waiting Game since it covers a wide spectrum of musical styles. His influences draw from Jimmy Page, jazz/funk players like Eric Krasno of the band Soulive and jazz great John Scofield. "It all gave me an outside the box perspective on guitar," he notes. "I got the sloppy rock style from Page and then the musical prowess from people like Scofield. Willie Nelson is also a big influence, and I think he is really underrated as a player."

The debut album draws from musical sources like rock’n’roll, current indie music, soul and funk, blues, jazz, folk and country and weaves them into his own create style. The last group to transform so many styles together were the Beatles in the later years of their career. The Waiting Game begins with the instumental "Six In The Back" heavily influenced by Bill Wither's "Lean On Me." "Get Burned" is a light, almost whimsical tune. The next song "Against The Wall" reminds me again of material you would hear on a later Beatles album. "8 On The Way" tends to have almost a new age/jazz sound with a surrealistic guitar added. Being a jazz fan, I found this song to have a lot of merit. This smooth jazz instrumental leads right into the next tune "Square One" with no break. The tune begins with a glockenspiel, continuing with slow jazz beats and guitar work flowing well throughout the entire song. "When It Comes To Love" has a very haunting background blended with a fiddle to compliment Dasher's vocals. To change the pace, "Three In The Front," a bluegrass tune, adds fiddle, lap steel, and harmonica that echoes at the end. "You Say You See Me" starts off with a hint of blues guitar for a soulful mix.

"Wishing I Was In Heaven" has been compared to Robert Plant’s solo work with the group Band Of Joy. It even parallels a tune you could hear on a Moreland & Arbuckle CD with that familiar cigar box slide guitar sound. In my estimation, this was shared as the best tune on the album with "In The End" a superb acoustic instrumental. "Let's Get Hitched" would definitely fit into the country genre. The title track "The Waiting Game" concludes the CD with a blend of piano, guitar, and vocals from Dasher.

After listening to The Waiting Game I think you will agree it is an eclectic melting pot of music Jimmy Dasher has established into a style all his own.

Reviewed by Rick Davis