what's new

Rave for "Busy Being Born" in Billboard Magazine

Gary just received a fantastic rave in the April 11th issue of Billboard magazine, the music industry bible. Gary's new album "Busy Being Born" was the lead Pop Album review, with a star no less! Here is the complete review:

More "radical Jewish culture" from avant-impresario John Zorn's Tzadik label. Guitarists' guitartist Gary Lucas has been a fixture on the downtown New York scene for years, solo and in league with such luminaries as Captain Beefheart, Joan Osborne, and the late Jeff Buckley. "Busy Being Born" is his album for "kids of all ages," based on Jewish themes. He essays traditional folk tunes and synagogue sing-alongs on a variety of electric, acoustic, and National steel guitars, putting a virtuosic spin on his heritage as well as adding a healthy dose of humor. Vocal originals like the anti-lullaby "Sandman" abut instrumental takes on famous melodies from "Fiddler On The Roof" and "Exodus," and there are even fantasias on Marx Brothers and "Popeye" airs. Zorn adds some apposite sax to "Adon Olom" and other tracks, but the highlight is Lucas' haunting solo rendering of the psalm "Hinay Ma Tov." Tzadik is distributed in the U.S. by Koch International.