Jack Grace 5: All The Above, It’s So Nice, Seven Cuts

As it turned out, we did have to wait four years for more new music to play on demand from Jack Grace, but that wasn’t due to any writer’s drought. Three related yet distinct releases give a glimpse of what he’s been up to in that time, and display his diversity.

All The Above finds him still in a mildly country mindset, but mostly in the instrumentation. James Buhre’s upright bass fits nicely with both drummers, while the legendary Earl Poole Ball’s piano livens up “Don’t Go To Memphis (Without Me)” and elsewhere. These are pleasant little strums, starting with the opening plea to “Ban Jo” through the simple pleasures in “Sunshine”. The lyrics are as sharp as ever, with a distinct “c’mon cheer up already” attitude that’s directed within as well as without. “Sweetening The Decisions” and “Wildflowers Thrive After Rain” provide wonderful perspective in the face of plaints like “Oh Woe Is Me”, “Wrong To Feel Right”, “I Will Complain”, and “What’s Your Problem”. To sum it all up, “I Love You More Every Day” layers guitars, vocals, and harmonica with the sweet voice of a toddler.

That last track makes a nice setup for It’s So Nice, “a family album for kids and their grownups” credited to Wandering Jack and featuring most of the players from All The Above. This collection of sweet, mostly original songs is just plain charming, almost daring the listener not to smile. Here his voice is still his own, but gentle, suitable for long car rides and not likely to disrupt nap time. Songs like “You Are Traveling On A Boat” and “Hot Buttered Roll” are whimsical and fun, and “More Than The Sun” and “Mommy Was A Baby Once” are nice family singalongs. Animals figure prominently, and not just when he makes the familiar noises. You already know the melody of “The Ants Go Marching”, and his update of “Humpty Dumpty” is very original.

Musically, “John Robin” and “Bam Boom” (something of a cousin to McCartney’s “Bip Bop” but with more substance) could be relics of Grace’s beginnings in Steak, the not-quite jam band from Boulder and Frisco who made their biggest mark with “Big Bear” as featured in the movie Super Troopers. Their first new music of the 21st century, Seven Cuts picks up where they left off, with jazzy chords and weird lyrics, both tinged with Spanish, about crises real (such as those in “Veronica” and “Another Threat”) and existential, and such activities as “Fishing With Chico” and “Shooting Turkeys From The Car”. Throughout, Grace’s voice and guitar blends with those of Erik Lieblien, Mike Jay and Stu Damm drive the back line, and band friend Quentin Jennings contributes lots of electric piano. Too bad there’s only seven cuts.

Jack Grace Band All The Above (2025)—4
Wandering Jack It’s So Nice (2025)—3
Steak Seven Cuts (2025)—3½