On ‘They Got It All,’ Lester Winchester McKendre Proves Power Trio Format Minus Guitar Works Skillfully (ALBUM REVIEW)

Typically, we associate the piano trio with jazz, and a power trio in rock is generally led by a guitarist. Drummer Jimmy Lester, bassist/songwriter/ singer/ bandleader Mark W. Winchester, and keyboardist Kevin McKendree, all Nashvillians, flip the script on They Got It All. The trio laid down these tracks in two days live at McKendree’s well-frequented Rock House studio in Franklin, TN. Winchester contributed the original songs, and two instrumentals were collaboratively developed in the studio. McKendree, a member of Delbert McClinton’s band, produced some great records for his bandleader and both produces and engineers here.

Yet if this kind of piano trio is somewhat unconventional in the genre, the instrumentation has another twist. Winchester was inspired by the band Morphine, where their late frontman, Mark Sandman, played a two-string bass. So, Winchester, in turn, did the same thing to his own bass. As the old saying goes, musicians often magically find songs in new guitars, as happened with Winchester. He tuned his 2-String in fifths and wrote the music for his songs before conjuring any lyrics. About a year later, by happenstance, Eastwood Guitars brought to market a replica “Sandman Model” 2-String bass, which Winchester immediately ordered. That led to new songs as well, the bulk of which make up this album. Winchester runs the bass through a bass and guitar amp simultaneously. This results in a crunchy guitar-like sound, though the trio is without a six-string.

The album opens with “I’m No Amateur,” featuring McKendree doubling on a Latin-like piano and B3 in a brisk mid-tempo groove, where the lyrics stress this wannabe professional musician’s intent on inducing smiles. Given Winchester’s history with Brian Setzer, it’s not surprising to find a rockabilly thread running through the material. “Delaney And The Ditch” and Baby’s Carburetor” rev up the engines (no pun intended), infused with highly churning rhythms and McKendree’s rollicking piano and several choruses of simply “aah, aah, aah, augh” in the former and the proverbial burning highway of love in the latter.

The title track plays to a simple, infectious garage-like groove, with McKendree on keyboard and Winchester exclaiming, “They got it all wrong about me,” thus belying the braggadocio nature of the title. “Surf the Allman Ballroom” is one of the two instrumentals. The trio delivers a surf vibe, propelled by Lester’s snare-focused drumming, evoking his time with Los Straightjackets. The other is the closer, “Along with the Sunshine,” which is, rather surprisingly, down-tempo, infused by Winchester’s string plucking and McKendree’s colorful piano chords.

“Down the Same Street’ has an insistent groove, reminiscent of some of the earliest rock n’ roll records. Somehow, the Dave Clark Five, Paul Revere and the Raiders, and bands of that ilk come to mind, except that the feel of this one is rawer and far less poppy. “Bad Mantras” is perhaps Winchester’s nod to Morphine, with off-color dark psyche lyrics, a steady thump, and even a touch of voodoo, delivered mostly by McKendree’s Wurlitzer. The humorous, stomping “Dylan Ain’t Spillin’” reveals Winchester’s sense of humor. Here’s a stanza – “Even Gandhi got tired of being poor I bet/Buddha didn’t bang a lotta gongs/Jesus, he ain’t come back yet/And Dylan ain’t spillin’ bout his songs.” Winchester’s wit again appears on the waltzing “The Right Pose,” – “the young man you fell for is hardly recognized.” Yet, he’s not bemoaning old age, just those first signs that appear in middle age.

They Got It All is surprisingly varied, both in tempo and in lyrical themes. Maybe a better title would be “It Only Takes Three.” The trio proves that simplicity and economy work well. They need nothing else.