Garland Jeffreys

Legendary singer Garland Jeffreys‘ thoughtful, passionate songs mix new wave, soul, reggae, garage rock, doo-wop, and Latin influences to create a deeply personal hybrid that reflects his own multi-ethnic roots. A New York native and veteran of the fertile mid-70s and early 80s scene, Jeffreys’ songs range from streetwise urban-romantic love songs to penetrating social critiques tackling issues of race in America.

After a long hiatus, Jeffreys has self-released three stellar albums over the last seven years: The King of In Between, was featured on numerous 2011 year-end best of lists, including those of Rolling Stone, MSN, and NPR, and been recognized as “a late career masterpiece” (Minneapolis Star Tribune). Truth Serum (2013) is “an album that’s urgent and immediate—much like New York City itself—but also filled with seven decades of gritty, street-smart attitude” (American Songwriter), and 14 Steps To Harlem (2017) had critics raving “more proof that he deserves musical comparisons that fall somewhere between Van Morrison, Bruce Springsteen, and Graham Parker” (Pop Matters) and “shows the now 73-year-old songwriter still reveling in the kind of wide-ranging songwriting that has today become a lost art” (Stereophile).

About Naked Soul

Naked Soul presents performances from some of the country’s top singer/songwriters without microphones or amplifiers, as if the music were, acoustically speaking, naked. The musicians in the series draw upon the universal themes inherent in Himalayan art—spirituality, peace, tolerance, wisdom, compassion—on select Friday evenings.

Image Credit

Photograph by Myriam Santos