"Woodenhead has emerged as probably the most important and certainly the most fascinating musical
unit New Orleans has seen in years...adamantly original, almost spiritual.." Eddie Allman, BATON ROUGE
MORNING ADVOCATE
"Ya'll suck!" audience member, Laplace Speedway, 1979
"Jimmy Robinson is a major talent who could easily become one of Austin's guitar heroes.." Michael
Point, AUSTIN-AMERICAN STATESMAN
"Why Ya'll play dat music dat make people fight?" Audience member, 1978 after huge brawl breaks out
among frenzied Bridge City Gumbo Festival attendees during Woodenhead's set
"A great band. Really great feeling" JOHN MCLAUGHLIN, 1985
"They've been around forever. They're not really happening" Editor of defunct New Orleans music
magazine at meeting for defunct music conference. 1986
"Woodenhead is not for the faint-hearted, musically or in spirit...they play a hard-driving, challenging
musi c that will literally rock you out of the comfortable cradle of Jazz, R&B and rock and roll into which
life in New Orlesans has lulled you." Rock Adam GAMBIT
"The guitar is way too loud" audience member,Cat's Cradle, Chapel Hill, N.C. June 15, 1985
"I can't hear the guitar at all" audience member,Cat's Cradle, Chapel Hill, N.C. June 15, 1985
"Robinson is a killer guitarist, capable of removing the heads of most head banging metal freaks. He is
also 'tasty' in the old-fashioned sense, rarely letting speed overtake the essentials." Mark Bingham,
WAVELENGTH MAGAZINE
"You boys need some uniforms" Jimmy Robinson's grandfather repeatedly from 1975 until his passing
in the mid-eighties.
"At the New Orleans jazz festival, Woodenhead gets a standing ovation for teaching traditional jazz fans
just how far imagination and electricity can push the form" ESQUIRE MAGAZINE
"An innovative band of extraordinary instrumentalists"...TRIANGLE LIVE, Winston-Salem, N.C.
"A band dedicated to creating music of the highest integrity, and not compromising during their three
decades of performances and recordings." MJ Brady PROGNOSIS
"It's kind of painful to my ear" Audience member, Tipitina's, 1980
MORE PRESS!
FROM JAZZREVIEW.COM
jazzreview.com® Featured Artist: Woodenhead CD Title: Perseverance Review: The present wave of
neo-progressive/fusion bands and/or instrumental rock bands refuses to peak! As proof, please refer
to the New Orleans-based Woodenhead: they ³fit² into both categories. They are all instrumental, have
the prerequisite influences of 70s prog and fusion icons Dixie Dregs, The Mahavishnu Orchestra and
Frank Zappa (i.e., Uncle Meat, Lumpy Gravy) [with a touch of The Muffins, too, maybe] and their
compositions feature a lot of twisty, darting and angular ensemble passages. What separates them from
the pack is their lightness of touch (a refreshing lack of bombast and excess) and their New Orleans
temperament. No, no one is likely to mistake Woodenhead for The Meters or The Neville Bros., but their
sound is informed with some of the sly, earthy cool (and some of the funky groove) that is common to
much of the sound of New Orleans (which is just as much a part of Tony Dagradi as Allen Toussaint or
Dr. John). Highlights include Fran Comiskey¹s keys, which have that neat chunky/shiny sound similar to
the mid-70s UK bands Hatfield & The North and Matching Mole and Jimmy Robinson¹s guitar
sometimes has a clean, surfin¹ Carlos Santana sound (as on the flamenco-tinged ³Little Blue²). The
much-maligned rogue beasts known as �'prog² and ³fusion² has got some lively years left, than
ks to
outfits like Woodenhead. Record Label Website: http://www.lasercd.com Artist's Website: http://
www.woodenheadmusic.com Reviewed by: Mark Keresman FROM PROGRESSIVEWORLD.NET Reviewed
by: Stephanie Sollow, April 2003 Free Electric Sound is proving itself to be a label to be reckoned with,
further evidence provided by the third release from The Laser's Edge offshoot Woodenhead's
Perserverance. Though a name likely new to many progressive music fans, they've been making music
for more than 20 years. Formed in 1975 by Jimmy Robinson and Danny Cassin, after each had played in
various bands "influenced by The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, The Byrds, Jimi Hendrix and Cream [Š ]
Robinson led [Š] a [Š] Yes/King Crimson/Zappa influenced band called Laugh In the Dark" before
forming Woodenhead. The band's biography forms the liner notes to the CD, bringing everyone up to
the present. In the immediate future, Woodenhead have been tapped to play at the NEARfest 2003 pre-
show along with Izz and Miriodor Š making the pre-show as diverse as the main festival itself. From the
first few notes of the first track you will be struck with two thoughts. The first is that you're hearing
country music's version of contemporary instrumental. But don't let the twang of "Big G" which is a very
neat, nice and mellow piece fool you. There's a jazz fusion heart inside this quartet. This becomes
immediately apparent in the funky "Bone Wars" that follows, a piece that also features the "trombones
from hell" (hence "bones") Mark Mullins, Brian O'Neil and Rick Trolsen. Yes there is something dark and
sometimes menacing about them to be sure. And in the rumbling, King Crimson like "Little Blue" we
hear darkness of another sort, though the mood of this track shifts from moody to frenetic back to
moodyŠ in and out of the blues, as it were. And in that frenetic section, they quote a phrase from a
well-known pieceŠ even if you can't name it, you'll instantly think of a Latin-tinged western. Crimson
will come to mind with "Buzz Beat" at times as well. The other thought that will come to you, and be
accurate throughout is that this is some high quality stuff. That stuff is a sharp, sweet, sometimes tart
guitar from band leader Jimmy Robinson, who plays with that "less is more" philosophy, making each
note count. The bounce and throb comes from the bass of Paul Clement, punctuated by the solid, tight
and yet loose drumming of Mark Whitaker. All this is given some wonderful texture from keyboardist
Fran Comisky, whose keys sound more like vibes on "Dance #2" along with some piano like textures.
And then there's those trombones what a sweet, deep sound they make Š throaty at times ("Funk
Tune"), ballsy at others ("Chef Of The Future"). This is a CD that hits all the right notes playful at times,
sounding as if they had fun playing with and off each other. Perhaps never more so in one of the 10
tracks here that I absolutely love, the rolling, rollicking "Yes And No," where Robinson and Clement
really go all out, leading into one of the sweetest guitar solos from Robinson. "Chef Of The Future" is
the perfect summer time song big, bold and funky. It is the perfect driving piece to zip along the
freeway or highway, given its ballsy sound by those 'bones. Robinson bends notes with a measured
control, yet signaling that what the chef is cooking up is not going to be tame in any way, shape or
form. There's some cool, muted wah-wah guitar from Robinson as well. In amongst all the "showing
off" is the mel
lower "Ayo Aise." Mellow doesn't mean in any way staid, as another lovely guitar solo from
Robinson is backed by some equally lovely piano stylings from Clement (where again, vibes will also
come to mind). Perseverance is one of those albums that begs repeated plays. Oh, by the way, I said
"Yes And No" was one of the 10 tracks that I love -- there are 10 tracks on the CD. Surely one of my top
picks come the end of the year. Very, very cool stuff.
Rating: 5/5
FROM GAMBIT
The city of New Orleans is not generally referred to as a haven for progressive-rock or jazz-fusion
bands. With six recordings supporting a 28-year (!) union, Woodenhead has maintained a cult-like
following in these Southern parts amid stints opening for like-minded bands like The Mahavishnu
Orchestra. Not your typical stock and trade rockers, the quartet's methodologies consist of pumping
rhythmic structures, laced with climactic movements and much more. For instance on the piece titled
"Bone Wars," the band interweaves complex '70s-style progressive rock stylizations a la Gentle Giant
with a dashing, contemporary vibe. Guitarist Jimmy Robinson and keyboardist Fran Comiskey
commingle polytonal treatments with traces of psychedelia on occasion. As the ensemble injects a
personalized stamp into multi-genre explorations, such as hard-rock drenched flamenco episodes and
funk/groove motifs with odd-metered time signatures. Moreover, Robinson's slick picking on "Yes and
No" steers the band into a quasi hoedown/modern rock-type opus. This unit has evolved into a tight-
knit entity, subsidized by drummer Mark Whitaker and bassist Paul Clement's disciplined timekeeping
along with a few well-placed twists and turns. An added pleasure resides within the musicians'
penchant for integrating memorably melodic themes into their repertoire, where Ms. Comiskey fuses
multi-hued synth treatments with jazzy lines into the mix. Needless to say, this group deserves
widespread exposure, as they loom rather large within the sometimes-stagnant progressive rock arena.
Its perseverance has paid off with this fine release. --
Astarita
FROM MUSICDISH INDUSTRY JOURNAL
www.musicdish.com/mag/archive Much to my surprise Woodenhead has been making music since
1975. It is literally impossible to keep up with all the bands that are coming out with music, so the fact
that this is the first time I had ever heard of this band, came as no surprise. I do however feel a certain
amount of frustration that I did not know about them because I really enjoyed their music.
"Perseverance" is a very interesting and contemplative gathering of instrumental tracks that offer a
remarkable variety for the perceptive listener within each composition. I heard so many different things
going on with this album. The first influence I detected was an authoritative Celtic sound in Jimmy
Robinson¹s guitar playing in different parts of several songs, and then elements of jazz and funk
bubble up to the surface. Each track from beginning to end continually evolves and breaks off into
different musical segments with varying degrees of jazz, rock, fusion and blues influences. Jam band
fans will most definitely find a common ground with this music because of the eclectic and tasteful
sounds. This music is not absorbed with merely one listen, several is more realistic in order to grasp
what this ultra talented band is trying to impress upon you. If you think the cover of this CD is rather
odd and original, just wait until you hear their music, it just gets be
tter as it gets further into the
album. If you look up the term progressive, chances are you will find this bands¹ name as part of the
definition.
FROM HIGHBIAS-AURAL FIXATIONS
www.highbias.com/archives/2003.. New Orleans progressive fusion quartet Woodenhead has been
slogging in the trenches reserved for such things since 1975. So Perseverance is an apt title for its
latest album. You can tell by listening to this band that it's no spring chicken‹these cats can play and
they know how to put a song together. Guitarist/composer Jimmy Robinson knows the importance of a
strong melody, especially in instrumental music; cuts like "Ayo Aise" and "Bone Wars" are more than just
outlines for soloing. Robinson is definitely the frontman here; his legato-filled lines dominate the
proceedings, especially on the Steve Morse-like "Dance #2." But keyboardist Fran Comiskey gets plenty
of room as well, even if some of her tones (will that damned 80s "bell/piano" sound ever go away?) are
suspect. Like many bands of this stripe, Woodenhead doesn't just draw from jazz and prog, but also
C&W ("Drop Dead"), funk ("Funk Tune," natch), pop ("Yes and No") and even a touch of Celtic music
("Chef of the Future"). A well-rounded ensemble like Woodenhead will give fusion a good name.
Michael Toland [buy it]
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