Pianist Kevin Gibbs made a good impression with his 1990 Concord CD Christmas Presence but unfortunately the enjoyable trio date (jazz interpretations of eight vintage Xmas songs) has since gone out of print and thus far stardom has eluded him. It seems only right in retrospect that his debut set featured Christmas songs since the first song Gibbs ever played on the piano was a one-finger version of "Silent Night" that he surprised his parents with when he was 17 months old. By the time he was two, Gibbs already could credibly play 20 Christmas carols. Kevin Gibbs started piano lessons at age four, met George Shearing (a major inspiration) when he was seven and as a teenager played with the Detroit Symphony Youth Orchestra. He also played locally and his group opened for many major names. He attended the University of Michigan School of Music for a year and then studied at the New England Conservatory, graduating in 1983. Gibbs has since worked in a variety of settings, especially in Boston and Detroit, and shows strong potential. ~ Scott Yanow, Rovi