Mike Glendinning: Press

"Wow dude... that song Vince sounds great. Love the guitar. Sounds like something a serial killer would listen to while packing up his knives and duct tape"

John

"Vince is "good n funky", just like I like it. Givin the bass player some is a plus. Two thumbs up!"

JD


"I dont know who VINCE is , but he sure can groove!"

Andy

"Hey! Cool song! You've got a unique sound."

Cole

"Hey Mike,we love the new tune "Vince" your guitar is killer!!!! But then again we dig every tasty lick in the Mike Glendinning sound!!"

Harry

Hey Mike,

Gotta tell you that I have been listening a lot to Random Acts Of Grunge Jazz.
Awesome effort!
From Fade all the way through to how Sun King breaks into Cold Heat and The Rock Fusion Of Vincent which makes me think of John Mclaughlin and Tommy Bolin and Jean Luc Ponty to name a few but with an Original Freshness.
Great Soloing throughout which makes this a Great CD!

Thanks Very Much.
David Kent

If the title of Mike Glendinning’s album, “Random Acts of Grunge Jazz,” does not get your attention, perhaps his rhythmic tunes laced with vibrant electric guitar will. Living up to the title’s promise, Glendinning delivers fluid tunes which have both a rough edge, mostly by way of his somewhat unpolished vocals, and a freeform jazz/easy listening attitude. But Glendinning really shines when he just lets it all go and offers up elegant instrumental covers on acoustic guitar.

Mike Glendinning

Random Acts of Grunge Jazz

Review by Jeremy Seffens


With a unique sound that is entirely his own, Mike Glendinning sets up the perfect face for “grunge jazz.” The inspirations for this disc are as numerous as the sounds portrayed, giving the listener an overall feeling of relaxation without worry.






Track by Track Review

Fade
This cut blasts into the CD sounding almost like blues, but the jazz takes over with some great guitar riffs. The upbeat tempo proves itself a solid ground for what's to come.

Dead Red Summer
This one has a more mellow, Jimmy Buffett-type feel to it. It nearly throws you off from the morbid lyrics, such as “He's a waste of life/Cutting his wrist would be a waste of a knife.”

Swine
Here's where the grunge comes into play - not in the Seattle Grunge fashion, but in a way that only Mike Glendinning can portray. Sticking with the laid-back feel, this number feels much like Deep Purple's “Lazy.”

I Left My Heart in San Francisco
An interesting little ditty, this acoustic instrumental reminisces days gone past.

Sun King
Sticking to the mellow tone, this track has an overall feel that reminds the listener of BB King meets Santana.

Cold Heat
Grunging forward into his new sound, Glendinning shows the harder sound that seems inspired from the psychedelic seventies.

Misterioso
Another instrumental, this one is a bit harder and sticks to the psychedelic side. The awesome guitar riffs keep on wave after wave.

Home
Softening up again, a sound of longing and loneliness is sung here.

Vinvent
Adding a little funk to the mix, this instrumental has its roots in Jimi Hendrix. The guitar never seems to let up, giving the listener constant change to an ongoing groove.

Somewhere Over the Rainbow
This track slows back down to end the album on a note of outlook to the future. One of the more interesting takes on this well-known classic, the solo guitar creates a smooth finish.

Published on: 25 Feb 2008
Random Acts of Grunge Jazz by Mike Glendinning is a very good jazz album; guitar centered with some quite pleasant vocals. It is a mixture of personal compositions with interesting interpretations of classic popular songs. It is definitely more jazz than grunge. The grunge portion is like a spicing, not a defining attribute in my view.
When “Fade” starts, I had images of hillbillies. The rhythm is fun and creates an offbeat introduction to this first opus. “Dead Red Summer” is a soft jazz ballad, even if the electric guitar voice is present with a near grunge sound. It produces an island in the sun feel, a Brazilian tinge. “Swine” continues to cruise in that quiet musical direction, with a pleasing effect. “I left My Heart in San Francisco” created by Douglas Cross and George Cory in 1954 has known fame in 1962 when Tony Bennett made it the title song of his 1962 award winning album. It was also adopted by the City and County of San Francisco as one of its two official anthems. Mike Glendinning offers us a convincing acoustic guitar interpretation of this great American classic. “Sun King” is more pop/rock sounding, in the likes of Eric Clapton. “Cold Heat” is spiced up with some grunge sounding guitar and is a bit heavier than the rest. It is one of my personal favourite on this CD, a real catchy song. “Misterioso” is one of the most famous pieces of Theleonius Monk, for many people one of his very best. Mike Glendinning has made a rock guitar version of it which is quite original. “Home” returns to the ballad format, a form Mike is very good at. “Vincent” is a jazz fusion piece, and a very good one at that. It is for me the best piece of this CD. “Somewhere over the Rainbow” is an instrumental interpretation of the song created by Harold Arien & E.Y. Harburg. Who could forget Judy Garland singing that touching song in the Wizard of Oz? The approach here is minimalist but effective.

Random Acts of Grunge Jazz is a promising début album, one that I strongly recommend for lovers of jazz and jazz fusion music with a grunge spicing.

Mike Glendinning showcases his excellent guitar technique on Random Acts of Grunge Jazz. The first track, "Fade," is manic. Then, suddenly eases into a clean sound and fades away. "Dead End Summer" is a pleasing jazz rock tune. "Swine" combines distorted guitar and interesting harmonies with female vocal overdubs, which are a nice touch. All songs on the album were written by Mike, except for three covers. He does a lovely, acoustic instrumental guitar arrangement of "I Left My Heart in San Francisco," and an interesting "grunge jazz" guitar instrumental of Thelonious Monk's "Misterioso." He also performs a beautiful electric jazz guitar arrangement of "Somewhere Over the Rainbow." The song, "Vincent," is a funky instrumental, showcasing Mike's virtuosity with Deb Tjoa playing fiddle. Great, musically solid album!