Nigel Gavin is a New Zealand based musician and composer, best known as a guitar player. In addition to being a highly regarded solo artist and session musician, Nigel has been a member of bands such as popular New Zealand jazz quartett The Nairobi Trio, Robert Fripp's The League of Crafty Guitarists, klezmer "Jews Brothers", and Jonathan Besser's Bravura, as well as collaborator with artists such as folk singers Luke Hurley, Wayne Gillespie and Lorina Harding, Maori soul diva Whirimako Black, multi-instrumentalist Tom Ludvigson, jazz singer Caitlin Smith and harmonica maestro Brendan Power. He has a vast musical vocabulary which ranges from acoustic blues and folk to jazz, rock, fusion, surf pop, complex ambient grooves and various world music genres, in particular klezmer. Nigel's original jazz compositions cross boundaries of genre and combine musical traditions. He has toured extensively and performed at numerous music and art festivals in New Zealand, America, Australia and Europe. An active mentor to young artists, Nigel founded and mentored the New Zealand guitar collective concept bands Gitbox and Gitbox Rebellion. As a constant innovator, he is a regular contributor to the Auckland experimental music salon Vitamin S and has given multimedia performances with photographer Ralph Talmont's photographs.
Nigel Gavin | |
|---|---|
| Born | New York |
| Instrument(s) | Composer, guitar, mandolin, glissentar, bass guitar |
| Years active | 1974–present |
| Labels | Ode Records |
| Website | www.nigelgavin.com |
Solo albums
editNigel Gavin has recorded four solo albums. Music for Flem volume II, Thrum in 2003, Visitation in 2007 and Waggle Dance in 2017.
Instruments
editNigel started out as a bass player and is best known as a guitarist but should probably be described as a stringed instrument player. His signature instrument is a 7-string acoustic guitar, made by New Zealand luthier Laurie Williams. His favourite electric guitars are a Fender Telecaster and an Ibanez 7-string, both of which he uses with a variety of effects. He also plays a Yamaha 6-string steel string acoustic, acoustic and electric mandolins, a banjo and an 11-string Godin Glissentar – in effect a fretless electric oud with the same scale and size as a conventional guitar. He is also a proficient piano player and percussionist. Nigel often employs live loops in both performance and recording, using a custom effects box with a large variety of foot pedals. He plays with both fingers and a pick but also has been known to strike, pick, strum and pluck an instrument's strings with a variety of implements, including a pipe cleaner.
Discography
edit| Date | Title | Label | Catalog Number | Artist/Group |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Solo | ||||
| 1998 | Music For Flem |
thrum001 | ||
| 2003 | Thrum |
Ode Records | thrum002 | |
| 2007 | Visitation |
Ode Records | thrum003 | |
| 2017 | Waggle Dance |
Thrum Records | ||
| Other | ||||
| Songs from down the Line | indie | Richard Watt | ||
| Kura Huna | Mai music | Whirimako Black | ||
| 1993 | Living in Exile |
Wayward/Sony Music NZ | Wayne Gillespie | |
| 2006 | Live at the Bunker with Wayne Gillespie | Wayward Music | WM006 | Wayne Gillespie and Nigel Gavin |
| The Nairobi Trio Live | Manu | Manu 1338 | the Nairobi Trio | |
| Through the Clouds | manu | manu 1432 | nairobi trio | |
| Shelf Life | Zulu zcd001 | Nairobi Trio | ||
| Live at the McDonald Winery | Zulu zcd002 | Nairobi trio | ||
| The Jew Brothers live at Gerhards | rouge records | the Jews Brothers | ||
| My Yiddish Swing | rouge records | The Jews Brothers | ||
| the Braeburn album | rouge records | the Jews Brothers | ||
| Too much Talent | rouge records | the Jews Brothers | ||
| Mr. Darwin's Dances | atoll | acd 200 | Besser & Bravura | |
| You Got Your Wish | atoll | acd 302 | Bravura | |
| Music for Peace vol. one | unsung | unsung 109 | Bravura and Friends | |
| Turn | rattle | rat do13 | Bravura | |
| New Orleans Gumbo Jazz-Live | bbs | bbs 102 | The Blue Bottom Stompers | |
| "But is it Folk?" | bbs | bbs 103 | The Blue Bottom Stompers | |
| Live on Waiheke Island Jazz festival | bbs | bbs 104 | The Blue Bottom Stompers | |
| Pesky Digits | rattle | rattle doo1 | Gitbox Rebellion | |
| Touch Wood | rattle / DGM | rat doo5/ DGM 9511 | Gitbox Rebellion | |
| Different Tracks | rattle | rat DOO3 | Misc. | |
| Parting Shots | Ode | CDODE 1290 | Last Man Down | |
| King of the Mercuries | ODE | CD Manu 1526 | Ross Mullins and the Snaps | |
| Tidemarks | Red Shaver | RS 101 | Ross Mullins | |
| 1991 | Show of Hands | EG | EEG 2102-2 | Robert Fripp & the League of Crafty Guitarists |
| Intergalactic Boogie Express | DGM | DGM 9502 | Robert Fripp & the League of Crafty Guitarists | |
| 2005 | Clean Break | global routes | Lorina Harding | |
| 2007 | East of the Sun | global roots music | CM001 | Carolina Moon |
| precious legacy | johnathan besser and co | |||
| Welcome to the Big Room | jazzscore | CD001 | Trip to the Moon | |
| 2008 | Ecstacy | attar | attar1003 | Bravura |
| Kokomo, In The Well | jayrem | BRPCD009 | Kokomo | |
| 2009 | Famous Blue Raincoat EP | wayward music | na | famous blue raincoat/Wayne Gillespie Rob Grosser |
| 2009 | Recent Works | Ode | manu 3004 | Nigel Gavin and Richard Adams (violinist) |
| A Job with the Circus | Ode records | dvdmanu 8005 | Nigel Gavin | |
| 2010 | Decadence Live | Atoll | ACD 409 | Besser & Bravura |
References
edit- Trevor Reekie, Moments Like These: Nigel Gavin, NZ Musician, 2009. Vol: 14 No: 8
- Andrew Healey, Nigel Gavin – One out of the Box, NZ Musician, 2007. Vol: 13 No: 4