Acceleration

In his latest double disc release, Acceleration, Tom Gavornik continues on with his forty-year, six-string love affair and creates a welcoming modern jazz space, always hospitable and graced by the spirits of many of his own musical icons. This is his eighth release and follows the double disc, Soul Cry, which topped many U.S. and Canadian jazz charts in 2005. Disc one gently rolls from the light "Breeze in a Bottle" through to a mellower "One Small Cup of Water," showcasing his skills with a Telecaster, and echoing the great Les Paul as well as many of the rock groups of the sixties. His more psychedelic side turns up in the track "Six String Child," where he is accompanied by his wife's vocals and lyrics. The collaboration is similar to one they did on Soul Cry's track "Anger," but I think that both of these tracks ultimately were an indulgence that I could have done without. As beautiful as her voice is, the effect of his wife singing his praises takes away from the musical dialogue of the rest of the work. I just couldn’t listen to the phrase, "a gypsy six string boy child so different from the rest" without wanting the track to end, quickly. And it did.

Soon enough the four part tribute to The Beatles began, and before I knew it we were entering the “Cream Suite.” These tributary sketches are interesting to listen to and are each composed with skill and enthusiasm. Always known for an eclectic sensibility, Gavornik is not shy about fusing the old with the new, and this pioneering spirit is what helps to keep jazz music alive and adds to the universal conversation of the art.

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