Todd Zimberg - Not A Tango (2025)

Todd Zimberg is a versatile drummer who has been a fixture in the Seattle area as a performer and an educator since the early 1980s. While he sometimes plays rock, r&b and blues, he is also a top-notch jazz drummer who is a tasteful accompanist and a melodic soloist. And on evidence of the music on Not A Tango which includes four of his originals along with three standards, he is also a fine songwriter.

In 2021, Zimberg recorded An Afternoon In Sellwood at the head of a trio with pianist Michael Gotz and bassist Perry Thoorsell two of the area’s top musicians. He uses the same players on Not A Tango, a wise decision since the trio often seems to think as one.

Not A Tango includes such Zimberg originals as the joyful opener “360 Zee” which is a little reminiscent of Horace Silver’s “The Preacher” and a perfect introduction to the trio, the subtle Latin piece “Not A Tango,” the jazz waltz ‘Chasing Butterflies,” and the modal “What?” The latter has one of Gotz’s most rewarding piano solos of the set, hinting a little at McCoy Tyner. The other selections include the optimistic feel given the lesser-known Keith Jarrett song “Lucky Southern,” a swinging rendition of Dizzy Gillespie’s “Birks’ Works,” and a tasteful treatment of “Beautiful Love.” In addition to Gotz, Thoorsell gets many opportunities to display his melodic solo style, and Zimberg contributes concise statements that are melodic and often utilizing brushes.

Not A Tango is a well-rounded and pleasing set of high-quality trio jazz that features the three musicians in top form.~Scott Yanow