Living In The Land Of Yes - A QNY Music Review

By Tony Adams

It's one of those Only-In-New-York things, when your Starbucks barista slips you his new CD. That is how I had the privilege of hearing Dave Rudbarg's premiere album, Living in the Land of Yes.

Because it is not too early to recommend music for holiday giving, I suggest you make note of this album for the day when you find yourself wanting to entertain a friend who likes the rough, bluesy, jazzy sound of Joe Cocker or Tom Waits.

Dave Rudbarg has a voice as big as the dozen songs on Living in the Land of Yes. I'm always surprised at the difference between a person's ordinarily calm demeanor and what is unleashed when he is belting a microphone with a lyric backed by friends who are all experienced musicians. When I mentioned this to Dave, he smiled and admitted to harboring an inner diva.

My favorite performance on this album is Dave's sexy cover of a song written by Randy Newman and made famous by Joe Cocker, You Can Leave Your Hat On. This is the kind of vocal that you always hope to hear when you find yourself in a small cafe featuring live music. Therefore, mark your calendars, Dave and friends will be performing on Saturday, January 15th at The Tea Lounge, 837 Union Street, Brooklyn.

(PS: Dave, please cover Tom Waits' Shiver Me Timbers on your next album. I suspect your version will be halfway between Tom's and Bette Midler's. And why can't we have your album in the rotation at the Starbucks on 67th and Columbus?)