Lenny Solomon & the Solomon Band

Lenny Solomon Band - Maybe Today - CD (Solomon Band) This disc really surprised me. Looking at the cover I expected a blues band that had been relegated to playing bars for a few decades and finally decided to make a CD. (This has been the case way too many times). How mistaken I was, the Lenny Solomon Band are a really tight and talented folk rock band. Lenny has a knack for lyrics and writing a guitar riff that draws a listener in. The lead track started off slow and I wasn't expecting much until I heard the title track "Maybe Today". This song sounded like any great folk song written in the early '70s, at once familiar and emotionally connecting. A few songs get a bit too far into country territory for my tastes, but that is typical of the genre. One of the best songs is the hilarious "Let's Go To Mar's" sung from the point of view of Georgie Bush. Most of the other songs are introspective in nature and very well thought out. A wonderful release from a band that really deserves a close listen. -- (2007) - www.thechickenfishspeaks.com

I had the great pleasure of making the musical acquaintance of Massachusetts-based Lenny Solomon with his “Global Warming Blues” entry on the 2005 Songs for a Better Planet compilation disc, produced by Toronto festival director and musician Brian Gladstone.

Although Mr. Solomon has a penchant for creating solid blues music with a lyrical social conscience, Maybe Today (2007) is a multi-flavoured, 14-song collection encompassing dreamily reflective folk ballads (“Maybe Today” and “Why”), dance-friendly country shuffles (“Spare Change, “Friendly Rock”), upbeat soft-rock melodies and rhythms (“When No One’s On the Run”, “Island of Misplaced Souls”) and fusions with a Dylan-like blues foundation (e.g. “It’s Snowing”). The mellow “Other Side of the Street” has a Tom Petty/Neil Young influence to it, and speaking of the latter, Mr. Young included Lenny’s “Let’s Go to Mars” track from this CD on his Living with War Today “Songs of the Times” website listing. It was #2 on the now-2000-plus songlist in September/07.

The fully competent Lenny Solomon Band is comprised of Lenny on lead vocal, guitar and harmonica, Don Barry on bass and vocals, Dennis Gurgul on drums and Bill Gibbs on lead guitar and vocals. Maria Breen and Leah McKinnon-Howe provide extra vocals on the aforementioned “Let’s Go to Mars”. These players are all experienced veterans who have gained the wisdom of playing music as a team rather than trying to outdo each other with their individual talents. This naturally leads to a thoroughly pleasant listening experience.

There are numerous songs that encourage repeated listens, particularly “The Flood”, a gentle but powerful ballad that features both electric and acoustic guitar-picking. The world-weary "It’s Snowing” and “Maybe Today” (the title track) are also favourites of mine.

Overall, the CD has a country-rock feel to it (with just a slight vocal twang) and an intellectual edge, to boot, so if that’s your musical preference, you’ll love this recording, particularly “Nashville Star” and the closing, live-off-the-floor “Players in the Band” (care of bassist Don Barry).

To read about the Lenny Solomon Band's interesting musical background, visit their website at www.solomonband.com. - www.southwestblues.com (Diane Wells) Nov 2007

Find a folk singer/songwriter who has been around since the 1960s, and you’ll find a sage with a distinctive style and wit who puts to music vital pieces of Americana. That’s what you'll find in Lenny Solomon. Solomon’s new CD Armando’s Pie offers listeners fourteen songs that feature Solomon’s unusual voice, clean guitar strumming, and soulful harmonica playing, which seem to provide the perfect accompaniment for the experiences, emotions and American culture that he sings about.

In Armando’s Pie, listeners will track with Solomon through cryptic and often humorous social commentary in songs like “Global Warming Blues," “The Vegan Song” and “Life At The Time." As you might expect from a folk singer, Solomon’s music talks about watershed moments in history, as in the song “Gettysburg." Also in the mix are songs like the title track, in which he heralds the virtues not only of the food, but also the ethnicity of his favorite pizza store. Love songs also dot the landscape of Solomon’s song selection. Songs like “One More Night” and “Come Take My Hand” are notable examples that will resonate with anybody who has ever said goodbye to someone they love.

This CD should of course be added to the playlist of everyone who loves folk music, but the message and the appeal of Armando’s Pie is big enough and important enough to earn a spot in every CD collection. - Indie-Music.com

Lenny Solomon is one of the many gifted singer/songwriters currently on the scene. His music has a delicately honed urgency that often reminds me of early Bob Dylan. On the opening track here, 'Five More Minutes' the similarity is marked and I mean that as a compliment to Lenny.

He writes and sings on matters that will touch the lives of most people at some time. But he also adds that magic ingredient called humor to some of the tracks. He seems to realize that we all love lyrics with meaning but we do not want to be submerged in causes and earnest pleas.

The title track 'Armando's Pie' appears to be about pizza but he gives us the tale of the immigrant opening his store with a light touch and holds your attention. If an Armando ever opens a pizza store he has a readymade advertisement here.

From the newcomer he switches to the long-time resident and brings us south with a smell of magnolia as we meet and hear the tale of 'Margaret'.

The songs are varied and the subjects are wide-ranging. Guess what is being examined with lines like, "He loves to go shopping in his SUV and a fridge as big as Venus, a stove as big as Mars." The track is 'Global Warming Blues '.

One of my favorite tracks is a great country-sounding piece called 'He's a Cowboy'. This brings the rider of the range up to the 21st century but with a sense of respect mingled with the humor.

He stays in a country vein and with humor on the beautifully titled 'Jews in Country Music'. This song reminds me of the best of Shel Silverstein with tongue firmly in cheek as he is "looking for a country Lenny Bernstein".

My love of the story song and history pointed me directly to 'Gettysburg' and there I found my top track. Here is a song that brings the horror of war on a one to one basis home to the listener.

The 14 tracks on this CD are all excellent and diverse enough to ensure that any listener will find a few that could become favorites. Solomon has the wisdom of that other person of that name. He gives us songs to make us think but never lets the message get in the way of the fact that to transmit any message, the medium must grab and hold our attention.
- for Rambles.net

Singer/songwriter/guitarist Lenny Solomon has a familiar, dusty old voice that rings of Bob Dylan, and on his new album Armando's Pie, Solomon delivers fourteen well-crafted songs rich with emotion, musicality and lore. Armed with an acoustic guitar, a glockenspiel, shakers, his voice and a harmonica, Solomon performs upbeat tunes that flow easy and sure as a cool running brook. His acoustic guitar work is capable and true while his harmonic playing wails emotive. While he turns in fine vocal performances on all fourteen cuts it is the songs Five More Minutes, Dead Man Smile, the lighthearted He's A Cowboy, and Life At The Time that really shine. Solomon turned to Bill Mason at Second Story Studio to record these songs and Mason did a fine job capturing Solomon's sentiment. Mason also contributes a lead guitar track as well as bass lines on several cuts rounding out this excellent sounding album. - Doug Sloan

Lenny Solomon was totally surprised when I showed an interest in his band "Solomon". I had just heard "Fishin'" and it stuck in my head in a pleasant way, a little bit like Otis Redding's "Dock of the Bay." It is the same kind of lazy song in which the pleasures of fishing are described and the relaxation that this offers. Actually, it's a song about almost nothing which is sung and played in a very laid back way. However, it stuck and I continued to play the song and so I asked Lenny if he would send his CD. Lenny was somewhat shocked that somebody in Europe knew his music because, according to him, most people on his street don't even know him. This is no big surprise since Lenny and his band; just called "Solomon," make music, which can be easily overlooked.

The CD reveals that "Fishin'" is not just a lucky shot but that Solomon specializes in this kind of lazy songs,something JJ Cale is also very good at. Lenny himself calls it back porch music and that is pretty much the picture that develops when you listen - a couple of older guys sitting on a small deck behind a house, playing music in a relaxed way. They take their time for each number. "Fishin'", at 4 1/2 minutes, is one of the shorter numbers. Now, don't arrive at the conclusion that this music just rambles on, because it is not. They play in an inspired, relaxed way, but certainly not nonchalant or uninterested. They merely take great pleasure in letting you listen to some songs written by Lenny.

Not all songs are as lighthearted as "Fishin'." The title song "Not Life Threatening" deals with a lady over eighty who suddenly realizes that she is getting older and lonelier and who, in the end, is found by a neighbor after having been dead for three weeks. It is a beautiful, non-dramatic, yet touching song. And then there are more beautiful songs on this disc. Lenny writes beautiful lyrics, composes beautiful melodies, and sings them relaxed for you, on your back porch. - Review of Not Life Threatening

Solomon is an eclectic Boston-based band comprised of Lenny Solomon (on lead vocals and acoustic guitar), Bill Gibbs (on acoustic lead and bass guitar, mandolin and banjo) and Dennis Gurgul on drums. Lenny Solomon writes all of the songs, which on Not Life Threatening range over several musical genres, from country to rock to more traditional folk and pop. What distinguishes the band is a very tight sound grounded by Solomon's and Gibbs' guitars, and driven by Gurgul's drums.

The recording opens with the tongue-in-cheek country tune Fishin'. The melody, powered by the skilled fingers of Bill Gibbs on lap steel guitar, catches you up in its rhythm and gets you moving. Lilac Night, on the other end of the musical scale, is soft and lovely, and dwells on sentimental thoughts and dreams. Slim Cedrone takes us there with his harmonica, ending this quiet ballad. Radio Days pokes fun at what Joni Mitchell called the "starmaking machinery." The singer cuts a tune and sends it to stations all around the country. It gets some airplay and some feedback. In the end the singer goes back to his guitar, "trying to find the formula to write myself a hit." The sound of the early Sixties is captured in Thoughts of You, a love song from someone looking back on what could have been. Bill Gibbs on lead electric guitar is particularly good here. The recording closes with a moving rendition of a song called Not Life Threatening. It tells the story of an older woman who complains of symptoms like loss of appetite and weakening of the muscles. The doctor tells her to go home and stop complaining - "it's not life threatening." But, of course, you know the rest of the story. She begins to grow weaker and fail, and a few weeks later a neighbor finds her dead in her bed. Does her life matter? Does any life matter? You bet. And without hope and caring, the symptoms are life threatening. The tune is well written and ably performed by Lenny Solomon and the band.

In listening to the Solomon band and their ability to cover all genres in a distinctly country-rock/folk-rock style, a number of groups come to mind, but the Grateful Dead most of all. Like the Dead there is great musicianship here and great fun. But most of all these guys know how to have fun with the music and approach it with a little tongue in their cheek, and a twinkle in their eye.

Pick up a copy of Not Life Threatening and enjoy the journey the music takes you on. You are going to have a great time. - Roberta Schwartz

Lenny Solomon was totally surprised when I showed an interest in his band "Solomon". I had just heard "Fishin'" and it stuck in my head in a pleasant way, a little bit like Otis Redding's "Dock of the Bay." It is the same kind of lazy song in which the pleasures of fishing are described and the relaxation that this offers. Actually, it's a song about almost nothing which is sung and played in a very laid back way. However, it stuck and I continued to play the song and so I asked Lenny if he would send his CD. Lenny was somewhat shocked that somebody in Europe knew his music because, according to him, most people on his street don't even know him. This is no big surprise since Lenny and his band; just called "Solomon," make music, which can be easily overlooked.

The CD reveals that "Fishin'" is not just a lucky shot but that Solomon specializes in this kind of lazy songs,something JJ Cale is also very good at. Lenny himself calls it back porch music and that is pretty much the picture that develops when you listen - a couple of older guys sitting on a small deck behind a house, playing music in a relaxed way. They take their time for each number. "Fishin'", at 4 1/2 minutes, is one of the shorter numbers. Now, don't arrive at the conclusion that this music just rambles on, because it is not. They play in an inspired, relaxed way, but certainly not nonchalant or uninterested. They merely take great pleasure in letting you listen to some songs written by Lenny.

Not all songs are as lighthearted as "Fishin'." The title song "Not Life Threatening" deals with a lady over eighty who suddenly realizes that she is getting older and lonelier and who, in the end, is found by a neighbor after having been dead for three weeks. It is a beautiful, non-dramatic, yet touching song. And then there are more beautiful songs on this disc. Lenny writes beautiful lyrics, composes beautiful melodies, and sings them relaxed for you, on your back porch. - Review of Not Life Threatening

What a perfect disc for the start of summer - Solomon offers up a trio of acoustic players, and songs that invite the listener to drift off and dream about sitting under a tree on a hot day, while a pitcher of ice cold lemonade sits nearby. I must admit that I couldn’t even concentrate on the lyrics for the first couple of listens, because I was just swept into the overall sound of the record. The first song, “Fishin,’” sets the tone of lush acoustics and soft harmonies that permeate the disc, carrying through to the beautiful “Lilac Night” and the laid-back “Firefly.” In certain songs, such as “Rode Rage,” the band dips into a bluesy framework, but they never veer too far away from the basic country roots. Throughout these 11 songs, sounds of banjos and steel guitars creep in and out, riding off the smooth, perfect vocals of Lenny Solomon, who at times sounds like a huskier version of Roger McGuinn. If you’re into mellow country and tasteful playing, then this is the disc for you. - Soundcheck Magazine

What a perfect disc for the start of summer - Solomon offers up a trio of acoustic players, and songs that invite the listener to drift off and dream about sitting under a tree on a hot day, while a pitcher of ice cold lemonade sits nearby. I must admit that I couldn’t even concentrate on the lyrics for the first couple of listens, because I was just swept into the overall sound of the record. The first song, “Fishin,’” sets the tone of lush acoustics and soft harmonies that permeate the disc, carrying through to the beautiful “Lilac Night” and the laid-back “Firefly.” In certain songs, such as “Rode Rage,” the band dips into a bluesy framework, but they never veer too far away from the basic country roots. Throughout these 11 songs, sounds of banjos and steel guitars creep in and out, riding off the smooth, perfect vocals of Lenny Solomon, who at times sounds like a huskier version of Roger McGuinn. If you’re into mellow country and tasteful playing, then this is the disc for you. - Soundcheck Magazine

Lenny Solomon is the brainchild behind the easy-going slice of Americana he calls Not Life Threatening. Fusing country, folk, and hillbilly music, Solomon creates flowing masterpieces filled with colorful imagery and pristine musicality.
Accompanied by bandmates Bill Gibbs on a host of stringed instruments and Dennis Gurgul on drums, this capable trio spins wistful tales of life aimed straight for the heart. Solomon's voice is aged and dusty and gives his tunes a genuineness not heard in most local projects. His songwriting is also first-rate as he unveils originals that were penned from 1997 to 2002.
If you're looking for something a little different and off the beaten path, you'll thoroughly enjoy Solomon's Not Life Threatening. - Doug Sloan

Lenny Solomon is the brainchild behind the easy-going slice of Americana he calls Not Life Threatening. Fusing country, folk, and hillbilly music, Solomon creates flowing masterpieces filled with colorful imagery and pristine musicality.
Accompanied by bandmates Bill Gibbs on a host of stringed instruments and Dennis Gurgul on drums, this capable trio spins wistful tales of life aimed straight for the heart. Solomon's voice is aged and dusty and gives his tunes a genuineness not heard in most local projects. His songwriting is also first-rate as he unveils originals that were penned from 1997 to 2002.
If you're looking for something a little different and off the beaten path, you'll thoroughly enjoy Solomon's Not Life Threatening. - Doug Sloan

Massachusetts’ Solomon (Lenny Solomon, Bill Gibbs & Dennis Gurgul) combines elements of bluegrass, blues, a little jazz, a little hot country, and puts it together with fine songwriting on “Not Life Threatening”. While the songs can be funny or wry, they can also be touching. The title cut, about the lack of quality in medical care for the aging, and on a deeper level about basic human respect for those who have been our parents and grandparents, is a fine song that cuts at the conscience. - Jim Graves,

Massachusetts’ Solomon (Lenny Solomon, Bill Gibbs & Dennis Gurgul) combines elements of bluegrass, blues, a little jazz, a little hot country, and puts it together with fine songwriting on “Not Life Threatening”. While the songs can be funny or wry, they can also be touching. The title cut, about the lack of quality in medical care for the aging, and on a deeper level about basic human respect for those who have been our parents and grandparents, is a fine song that cuts at the conscience. - Jim Graves,