Short Reviews [Gary Husband - 2025 - "Postcards from the Past"]

This double CD set is a walk through Gary’s personal archives and contains previously unreleased tracks from 1978 to 2021. He is very unusual within the music scene as not only is he revered in rock, jazz and fusion settings, drumming with the likes of Allan Holdsworth, Level 42, Gary Moore and Jack Bruce, but he is also highly regarded as a pianist, playing with John McLaughlin & The 4th Dimension Band, Billy Cobham’s Spectrum 50 and Time Machine bands and Bill Evans & the Vansband All-Stars. This collection looks back to his early experimental improv jams with guitarist Steve Topping and bassist Paul Carmichael, a demo he had made in 1979 with Allan Holdsworth (with whom he will always be closely linked), and DAT board tapes from live performances with his jazz quartet at Ronnie Scott’s in London and his Force Majeure septet at Turner Sims Concert Hall in Southampton. We even get him playing nylon and steel string guitar at times. Husband has always struck me as a musician’s musician, someone who has always been more highly regarded for the work he has achieved with others as opposed to stepping out on his own, but in recent years we have been fortunate enough to hear more from him (due in no small part to Leo Pavkovic of Moonjune) and sets like this is a real revelation. His drumming on “Water On The Brain” is just insane, as he attacks the kit like a madman, then bringing it down when the time is right before starting off again, a skill any drummer would be incredibly jealous of yet he also knows exactly what he is doing when he is on the piano, where he is a master of that instrument as well. Of course, given the length of time these recordings cover, as well as the different circumstances in which they were recorded, there is quite a variation between the quality and clarity, but one needs to expect that. The important thing is that while some will be drawn to this due to the rarity of the performances, such as the demo with Allan Holdsworth of “The Things You See (When You Haven't Got Your Gun)”, this is a collection which is really enjoyable and worth hearing. There are plenty of highlights in this 23-song set which is nearly two hours in length, with Gary’s delicate touch on Chick Corea’s “500 Miles High” being one of many, and one can hear just how important Gary has been to inventive music over the last 50 years. If you have yet to come across Gary in one of his many collaborations, then this is a good place to start as it provides a real insight across the breadth of his styles. Really enjoyable.