Water With A Smile
  Virago

AKUSTIK GITARRE (GERMANY) Ausgabe 4/06 – Juli/August 2006 (Original German text by Holger Ruening, : The mixture of Jazz, World Music, Singer-Songwriter elements, latin and funk and even a dash of soul lends this album a charm that is hard for the listener to resist.
GUITARNOISE (AJ Charron, October 16, 2004) : Gilbert plays with his heart and does things that most of us can only dream of. Water With A Smile is a beautifully rendered jazz album that one doesn’t tire of listening to
ALL ABOUT JAZZ by Mark Sabbatini (May 2005) : Water With A Smile is an unquestionable success. Those wanting to hear more of the guitarist will find other albums more satisfying, but this one is likely to appeal to a much larger crowd. It’s accessible to the mainstream without condescending, and diverse without feeling false to the ethnic genres it pursues.
DE MORGEN, Jempi Samyn, 3/11/04 (translation from Dutch) :  Vocal jazz, folk and latin jazz beautifully merged in a surprisingly strong Belgian product.
ROOTSTOWN MUSIC ZINE #98 :. A fascinating CD.
GONZO CIRCUS MAGAZINE (B) : (translation) Wonderful songs full of craftmanship with here and there a snuff of latin and bossa nova.The leading part is taken by singer Lea Van Loo who, with her warm funky voice, lift up the already amazing contributions from the other members to an even higher level (Patrick Bruneel)
KWADRATUUR (B) :  De Gilbert Isbin Group brengt een prachtige stijlenmix die nauwelijks natuurlijker kan overkomen. Alle stijlen hebben op elk nummer een rechtmatig doel worden samen versmolten tot een homogeen geheel dat bruist van de muzikale superioriteit. Jan Lepoutre
BRIDGE GUITAR REVIEWS (NL), Henk Te Veldhuis  / Together all the musicians present a unique atmosphere with a intense chemistry. Highly recommended for any jazz music lover.
EXIT (B) : A very accessible CD this time, that is a showcase of Isbin’s versatile talent. (Steven Decaestecker)
LE SOIR MAGAZINE, Marc Danval (B) – 6/11/2004 :  Cette musique coule de source avec sérénité. Elle se joue comme on s’aime le feu. Ses notes déboulent, la langueur atteint parfois au sublime ené vitant les piges de la sophistication. Une richesse harmonique nous fait vivre des thèmes empreints d’une notion de solarité;. Elle illumine et réchauffe.
LE JAZZ BELGE, JUNE 2005, Pierre Dulieu : Venant de la part d’un artiste que l’on pensait condamné une conception abstraite de la musique, Water With A Smile risque d’en surprendre plus d’un!
REVIEW OF SONG OF THE YEAR CONTEST (USA) ON ‘PICKING A FLOWER
LYRICS: The lyrics on this jazz number are superb. Excellent word usage, styling, tempo, and complexity. Great job. MUSIC: The vocals are awesome! The guitar, baseline, and percussion are wonderful on their own and blend wonderfully! MELODIES: The melodies were absolutely wonderful! Pure jazz riffs with a perfect flow! STRUCTURE: I cannot say anything about the structure of this song. The chord progressions are great. The musical elements come together and blend well, harmonizing fluidly. Tempo, flow, levels, breaks, changeupsÉeverything is as it should. Excellent! MARKETABILITY: This is a jazz work of art that in said genre should be a dominating song. I thoroughly hope to see this song on the market and on the airwaves soon. EMOTIONAL RESPONSE :  Coming from a virgin jazz enthusiast, I must say that this song grabs me in every way, making me want to dance, sing along, tap my toes, and just feel the music!