Artist:     The Gibson Brothers

Album:     Mockingbird

Label:     Easy Eye Sound

Release Date:     11.15.2018

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Who could have seen this coming? Maybe those who know the brothers Eric and Leigh Gibson from as far back as their upbringing in the northernmost farmlands of New York State. Likely not their fans. Certainly not this enthusiast. I’ve called The Gibson Brothers my favorite traditional bluegrass band since the day in 2002 that I was introduced to them through Bona Fide, their fifth of now 14 albums. The ‘grass always glistened so beautifully in their music. But Mockingbird takes a sharp left up and away from bluegrass, flying high as a country-soul album for the ages.

The songs, nine out of ten written by the brothers with producer Dan Auerbach of the Black Keys, call to mind the classic era of the 1960s, when carefully cultivated compositions and sublime performances governed the airwaves. Eric and Leigh Gibson sing utterly distinctly, and in harmony as one, their blessed voices and their connection undeniably attractive. They’re at ease with one another, the band, and the material. A large group of seasoned Nashville players enhances all of it, and Auerbach’s production focuses on every important aspect at once, and perfectly. No less than the legendary songwriter Dan Penn springs to mind in “Travelin’ Day,” the steel guitar wafting through the tune offering it some Southwestern heat. “Cool Drink of Water” then envelops anyone fortunate enough to hear it with its dramatic images of infatuation, in a surprisingly lighthearted delivery. For “Love the Land,” The Gibson Brothers take a very simple thought and turn it into a gentle, yet profound and enduring recording. There’s driving rock ‘n’ roll in “Lay Your Body Down,” pure Philly soul in “I’m a Better Man,” and the huge presence of The Everly Brothers in the sweet, flattering “Special One.” The sole cover, a strings-enhanced re-imagining of R.E.M.’s “Everybody Hurts,” makes for one very luxurious climax.

The players, plus a fiddler, come closest to what the Gibson’s fans would expect on “So Much Love in My Baby’s Eyes,” an absolutely brilliant song that does nevertheless sound a bit out of place in this context. Mockingbird succeeds on the strength of its grandeur, its displays of miraculous gifts, and by the chances The Gibson Brothers took to bring it all together. It moves the body and the soul just as the best of musical experiences should.

—Tom Clarke