Matt Munisteri plays electric guitar by focusing on the full strummed rhythm of many pre-bop swing guitarists complemented by the snare drum & high-hat cymbal work of Quincy Davis, the steady upright string-bass plucks of Jim Whitney while the French accordion of Will Holshauser and the muted trumpet of Jon Erik Kellso punctuates each melody with front-line accompaniment.

The tunes are Matt Munisteri originals arranged in a style the Village Voice called, “neither jazz, rock or cabaret but at the same time all of them." Will's accordion adds old world flavors but underlying the pulse is the illusion of Brock Mumford, a mysterious guitarist photographed in 1908 with the never recorded New Orleans trumpeter Buddy Bolden.

“Get Acquainted With Yourself", a Sammy Cahn romp coped from a Willie “The Lion" Smith 78 diffuses the anticipation of this Sunday night January 20, 2002 audience at Joe's Pub and Bob Will's “No Time Like The Past" sets the tone by featuring the baby faced Mr. Holshauser playing against the Umpa-Umpa style of a German Oktoberfest band minus tuba. Jon Erik's Pujé trumpets solo reminiscent of a youthful Louis Armstrong draws applause for its dramatic presentation. On Matt's “Lucky Ole Tramp", an original lyric has a Hoagy Carmichael feel but with Jim Whitney's amp turned up his picking is elevated to an equal partner with Jon Erik's open trumpet solo.

Sounding like a Cirque du Soliel Band - muted trumpet over an accordion until Matts lyric makes “Sign Me UP" like Cabaret without the smoke and sex. “My first attempt at Surrealism", he reveals after drinking sparkling water from a green bottle just like it was a beer!

Tuning down before the accapella opening for “Sparkle", a tune influenced by Eddie Lang's rhythm in “Heartbreak" has a catchy lyric. On “Sidestep" Matt really captures the guitarist genre and Jon Erik's crying muted trumpet reminds me of Herman Autry with Fats Waller's Rhythm Boys. Quincy Davis brushes on snare drum solo interlude before Matt returns to vocalize the head - “Home, sweet home".

After two Willard Robison titles, “Truthful Parson Brown", “New Home In The Morning" each with hot trumpet solos Matt announced, “Here's a Django Reinhardt tune “Douce Ambiance" but his heavy plunking over-amplified solo is laboriously simplistic but cooly played, Will on the other hand jams out a hot solo that captures the French gypsy atmosphere.

“Picciaridu", an up waltz, includes some great guitar fingering between the intriguing vocal. Matt's rendition of “Cry, Cry, Cry" as an upbeat lament with delightful guitar riffs and Jon Erik's trumpet gives a heavy brass force to the piece coupled with the accordion's exciting enthusiastic pumping ends this upbeat eclectic evening.

But applause from the packed house at Joe's demands an encore. “I've written tunes for Women and this is one (referring to Ingrid of the Flying Neutrino's). “Johnny" a “gal in love with a guy that's not around", Matt explains before singing and playing us “down that dusty road". Continuing Matt sang Dylan's “Don't Think Twice" and later in an e-mail explained, “I've always liked this song, as have many others given the amount of times it's been covered. But I always felt that he (Dylan) had the wrong changes to it, so changed them. Oh well. Johnny Cash changed the words . . .".

Check out www.BrockMumford.com and await the just recorded Matt Munisteri CD for some swell tunes and intriguing lyrics.

(C) Dan Kassell
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