Gail Wade

There's so much to appreciate about Gail Wade in this excellent debut recording, it's difficult deciding where to start. First, Gail's enticing vocal range permits her to move with ease from sultry and mischievous to poignant and heartwarming. Her diverse musical apprenticeship prepared her to feel at home in a broad variety of musical styles, whether it is bluegrass, blues, jazz/swing, folk, or country. In addition, she plays guitar, clawhammer banjo, wrote six of the compositions, and she produced the CD.
The standard "Ain't Misbehavin" opens the collection with Gail's playful, romantic vocals, along with a jazzy rhythm guitar, backed by Kevin Lynch on mandolin, Peggy Ann Harvey on soprano sax, and John Urbanik on upright bass. From there, she changes moods nicely on her lovely folk original, "Anna's Owl," with Peggy's plaintive fiddle runs.
Gail gets down and bluesy on "Try It On For Size," which includes some smoldering guitar work by Kevin. Then it's off to Brazil with the Latin "Rio De Janeiro Blues" before returning to American folks with "All The Old Men Are Gone." The one instrumental of the CD is Gail's lilting "Down The Kennebec," with everyone taking a turn on guitar, fiddle and mandolin.
With her broad and very tasteful musical and vocal range, it's easy to envision Gail showing up, and excelling, just about anywhere: the Grand Ole Opry, your local jazz venue, a Top 40 country , or pop radio station.
She and her band are a refreshing treat and a musical force deserving of big-time discovery. ("cd Reviews" by Joe Faletta)
- Bluegrass Now Magazine/ Oct. 2006

A brilliant effort from a very talented lady. Swing,folk,country....covers and originals, Gail does it all and very well.
Backed by equally inspired talent, including Peggy Ann Harvey who plays everything from fiddle, sax, flute and harmonica. This is a first rate cd, beginning to end.
Joe Falletta
Bluegrass Now Magazine - Bluegrass Now Magazine Nov. 2006

Being an eclectic musician with many interests can help a versatile performer land many engagements, but it can also make an artist difficult to categorize. No matter because who needs categorization? Grounded as a singer/songwriter and guitarist, Gail Wade demonstrates comfort with folk, blues, jazz, and swing idioms. With regular performing during the past 25 years, I suspect that she's built a considerable fan base for her approach to music. She's sung on the Tall Ships in Maine, toured Europe as a member of "The Hot Flashes," and completed an Irish tour with singer/songwriter Gary Ferguson (who harmonizes here with Gail on her self-penned song, "Harder Every Day").

On "Journey," the core band includes Gail Wade (lead & harmony vocals, guitar, clawhammer banjo), Peggy Ann Harvey (fiddle, flute, sax, harmonica), Kevin Lynch (mandolin, lead guitar, National steel guitar), and John Urbanik (string bass). On one track apiece, she's joined by Stephan Wade (lead guitar on "Rio"), Ian Wade (percussion), and Gary Ferguson (harmony vocal).

"Journey" will launch Wade to new heights as more folks discover her earthy and enchanting material. Her relaxed and seamless set offers plenty of intelligently thoughtful sentiment. Wade opens with an interesting rendition of "Ain't Misbehavin'," with some countering sax riffs that impart a personality of their own. Other covers come from Roseanne Cash/John Levanthal, Deborah Hornblow, Pam Gadd, Richard Torrance/John Haeny, and Mark Irwin/Irene Kelley. Her scat in "Rio De Janeiro Blue" shows another way that she embellishes a song, and my guess is that she learned this song from Nicolette Larson's cover of it in the 1980s. The banjo and flute in "Will You Remember Me?" give that piece a haunting old-time, almost Celtic, flavor. With a more erudite, poetic approach to songwriting than Wade's more direct style, Deborah Hornblow's "Winter" is a beautiful love song that requires contemplation. Gail's rendition of bluegrass songwriter Pam Gadd's "All the Old Men are Gone" is quite different than the version I've heard Doyle Lawson & Quicksilver do.

Most impressively, Gail Wade wrote six of the songs on "Journey." Lyrics aren't included in the CD jacket, and I hope she'll find a way to upload them on-line. To analyze her skill development as a tunesmith, I started with her blues at track #8, "Hurry Home Daddy," that Gail wrote way back in 1980. It's rather standard fare, enhanced by Harvey's harmonica and Lynch's guitar. Written between 2000-2004, Wade's other originals have thoughtfully flowing melodic twists and lyrical turns. I appreciate songs that are straight-forward, conversational, and that have a beginning, middle and end. Such is the case with songs like "Try it On for Size," Harder Every Day," and the spiritually-tinged title track, "Journey." Her messages are clear and sincere. A ballad like "Anna's Owl" has lyrics that set a stage, pull us into the story, grab our attention and hold it until the song's conclusion. Gail's bouncy instrumental "Down the Kennebec" conjures imagery of river rafting in Maine.

Similar to Karla Bonoff's singing, Gail Wade's alluring voice is silky smooth, and her folk/blues-based repertoire makes for an enchanting listen, especially at dusk when in a reflective mood. I'd like to hear Gail sing some more duets with a male voice. Perhaps a song like "That's How You Know" (recorded as a duet by Steve Wariner and Nicolette Larson) would work for her and Gary Ferguson. I wonder if Gail has ever had any interest in singing solid roadhouse R&B. That type of production could convince a major label that she's more than just a versatile folkie with a sweet voice. No matter what direction she takes, I'm certain that major recognition and success are just on the horizon for Gail Wade. (Joe Ross)
- Joe Ross Reviews / April 2007

Wade has an exquisite voice that ranges easily between delicate and robust on her first album. The Colchester singer wrote six of the 12 songs here and chose covers that span genres. There's a jaunty, low-key version of Ain't Misbehavin' and a melancholy take on Rosanne Cash's Will You Remember Me?. The title track, an original, is a folk-gospel number with sputtering harmonica in the background, and the bluesy ballad Try It On For Size is reminiscent of early Bonnie Raitt.
~ Hartford Courant ( Hartford, CT / October 2005)
"Sound Check: Music News & Views" by Eric R. Danton
- The Hartford Courant / Oct 2005