Gunhild Carling Swings Back into Action with Good Evening Cats!

The saying “you can’t keep a good woman down” might well have been inspired by the Swedish Queen of Swing, Gunhild Carling. She is bouncing back from a global pandemic and shutdown, the only way she knows how—with lots and lots of love, humor and music, as well as a new album. The last time The Syncopated Times caught up with the multi-talented and multi-lingual multi-instrumentalist in 2021 (see: Gunhild Carling: Living the Jazz Life), she had been staying home due to the COVID-19 shutdown. The epidemic, while of concern, didn’t curb Carling’s creativity and passion for jazz and performing for audiences. Now in 2023, live music is back in full swing and Carling has released a brand-new album, Good Evening Cats, that she says attempts to capture the fun of her live performances. It is a landmark album, given it is her 10th release, coming on the heels of her 2015 release Harlem Joy. Carling put out her first record back in 1984 and has become a global jazz sensation known her skills at playing many instruments (often at the same time), enthusiastic dancing, and her charming, Billie Holiday-inspired singing. “I must say that COVID pandemic situation was great for me,” Carling said speaking from her home in Cupertino, California, “because I have a family with two kids, and as a musician I have to travel all the time. There is no way to get away from that. Since my k