About This:
Hop The Fence is the latest CD from voicestrumentalist, songwriter and guitarist Lipbone Redding. Star of the thriving downtown New York jazz/blues bistro scene, Lipbone brings the culmination of a year of nightly live performances to the studio. Hop The Fence captures the truth and vitality of Lipbone's live showmanship as well as the tightness and monster groove of the trio with Jeff Eyrich on upright bass and Rich Zukor on drums. In usual Lipbone fashion, the artist takes us musically, lyrically and stylistically around the world and back again, from South America with the catchy sing-a-long "Dogs of Santiago," about the life of a stray dog on the dirty streets, to a New Orleans brothel in the hip shaking "Tuscaloosa Suntan," where two ladies become humorously/tragically trapped in a suntan booth. Without missing a beat, LipBone wisks us to a far-off Himalayan mountaintop with the exotic and contemplative "Indian Rose." There are sensual ballads along the way with "Old Flame" and full out dance numbers populated by boisterous street characters in "Closing Time" as well as a hopeful vision for a world in distress with "Love Is The Answer For World Peace." The most remarkable feature of this live in-the-studio CD is the convincing vocal-trombone solos and didjeridoo sounds performed by this versatile voicestrumentalist, which he performs without the use of any electronic assistance or studio "magic" save his own mouth pressed against the old fashioned Elvis style microphone. All of the songs on Hop The Fence were written by Lipbone with the exception of the classic Merle Travis tune "Sixteen Tons" which Lipbone performs with his own unique flair. With early roots as a seasonal farm worker and subway musician and a vision of the world which is humorous and hopeful, Lipbone Redding brings a lot to the table in Hop The Fence. The sensual and beautifully seasoned voice of Redding along with a devil-may-care attitude makes light work of otherwise heavy subject matter, paving the way for this unusual and highly original "Feel Good" album. The CD was produced by Jeff Eyrich of Dave's True Story.