Album Review: Gina Coleman – Unequivocally Blue

On her own, leading a succession of groups and in recent year fronting the Misty Blues Band, Gina Coleman has paid her dues and earned accolades while doing so. A two-time nominee for songwriting (in the Best Contemporary Blues category) by the Independent Blues Awards, Coleman is also an accomplished gospel and blues vocalist and cigar-box guitarist.

Coleman’s musical assets are on display on her new release, Unequivocally Blue. As the disc’s liner notes explain, the session for the album followed immediately – within an hour – of Coleman’s return from her mother’s funeral. That backstory provides helpful context for the album’s most emotionally rich moments.

The album opens with “No More to Give,” a lump-in-the-throat cris de coeur. It’s the only track on the album on which Coleman accompanies herself on guitar; elsewhere on Unequivocally Blue she focuses solely on vocals, leaving the instrumentation to her capable Misty Blues Band mates.

Coleman’s voice is an instrument capable of a great deal of expression. While her husky, doleful approach on “No More to Give” is note-perfect, it’s merely one side of her artistry. “Days Gone By” almost sounds like a different singer; it’s comparatively upbeat and playful, with some tasty slide work from Seth Fleischman. The title track swings in a slinky manner, veering tantalizingly close to jazz; Coleman’s vocal moves in that direction as well.

“Let Them Blues” places acoustic guitar in the lead, with a set of bouncy standard blues changes underpinning the tune. It’s soul-inspiring in a secular sort of way. “Ain’t No Giving Tree” sounds like a different band on a different album, moving in an almost pop direction. Somehow, it works in the context of the album, underscoring the versatility and range of Coleman and her band.

“Fly With Me” is hypnotic and subtle, with a lively, understated instrumental break. The sassy “How the Blues Feels” is torchy and sensual. “Up Above My Head” is playfully funky, with a Staple Singers-inspired gospel feel. The spare “Nothing in Vain” is haunting, meditative and moving. A deep groove forms the basis of “Stoop Stomp”; it’s a reminder yet again of Gina Coleman’s stylistic range.

The album concludes with an atmospheric track: “Will My Blues” serves up gentle guitar picking and pattering percussion, plus Coleman’s stirring voice. It’s blues in its lyrics, if not in its arrangement. And it’s an uplifting note upon which to end the record.