A forum for jazz reviews, discussion of new jazz, blues music, the musicians, reviews of recent and historical releases, reviews of live performances, concerts, interviews and almost anything I find of interest.
by Ralph A. Miriello
With the unseasonably warm weather outside in most parts of the country, it is hard to wrap my head around the fact that Christmas and New Year's are knocking on our door. It has been a tumultuous year and it is certainly welcome to have some good cheer spread around for a change instead of the daily dose of vitriolics that seem to inundate our air waves. I for one have a great deal to be thankful for and my suspicion is most of you out there do also. So without further ado Happy Holidays to all and here are a few Holiday songs that will hopefully put you in the spirit and maybe even put a smile on your face. Freddy Cole's "Jingles the Christmas Cat"
Bill Evans Trio : "Santa Claus is Coming to Town"
Julie London: "I Want You for Christmas"
Louis Prima: "Shake Hands with Santa Claus"
John McLaughlin: "O Come, O Come Emanuel"
Jimmy Smith : "White Christmas"
Lionel Hampton with Sonny Parker on Vocals "Merry Christmas Baby"
Rahsaan Roland Kirk: "Christmas Song"
Lou Rawls and Diane Reeves: "Baby It's Cold Outside"
Django Reinhardt and Stephane Grappelli : "Christmas Swing"
Every year jazz journalists make their end of year "best of" lists. They become a tradition and they are as subjective as anything can be but they do offer the listening public a great place to start looking and listening to the many new and quality offerings that jazz artists have released in the past year.
No list can be all inclusive and no list can be without personal prejudices, having said that, this is my list of the best of jazz in 2015. I have included a category for best debut album, best historical release, and best Latin Jazz album. One thing I can assure you, there is something in here for almost every taste. There is no particular order to this list so please enjoy this cornucopia of music and Happy Holidays to all.
Vibraphonist Chris Dingman's The Subliminal and the Sublime on Inner Arts
Saxophonist JD Allen's Trio with Greg August and Rudy Royston: Graffitti on Savant
Charlie Hunter Trio with Curtis Fowlkes and Bobby Previte ; Let The Bells Ring On on Charlie Hunter Music
Jose James: Yesterday I Had The Blues, the Music of Billie Hollidayon Blue Note
John Fedchock New York Big Band: Like It Is on Mama records
Kenny Werner Trio: The Melody with Ari Hoenig, drums and Johannes Weidenmueller, basson Pirouet
Rudresh Mahanthappa: Bird Calls on ACT Music with ; Adam O’Farrill: trumpet; Matt
Mitchell: piano; Francois Moutin: acoustic bass; Rudy Royston: drums. on ACT Music
Orrin Evans: The Evolution of Oneself with Christian McBride bass and · Karriem Riggins drums. on Smoke Records
Dave Stryker: Messin' with Mr. T : Jared Gold, organ,, Houston Person, saxophone, McClenty Hunter, drums. on Strikezone
Manuel Valera and Groove Square: Urban Landscape: with Nir Felder, guitar, John Ellis, saxophones, E.J. Strickland, drums and John Benitez bass. on Destiny Records
Tigran Hamasysan : Luys I Luso with the Yerevan State Choir
Kamsai Washington; The Epic: on Brainfeeder
Steve Johns : Family: with Debbie Keefe Johns, saxophone, Daryl Johns, bass, Bob DeVos, guitar, Dave Stryker guitar on Strikezone
Dave Douglas Quintet : Brazen Heart : with Jon Irabagon (saxophones), Matt Mitchell (piano), Linda Oh (bass) and Rudy Royston (drums) on Greenleaf Music
Giacomo Gates : Everything is Cool: with John DiMartino , piano, Ed Howard, bass, Willard Dyson Drums, Grant Stewart saxophone, Tony Lombardozzi, guitar. on Savant
Kait Dunton ; Trio Kait with Cooper Appelt on bass and Jake Reed on drums
Pat Bianchi : A Higher Standard: with Craig Ebner: guitar; Byron Landham: drums.
Mark Winkler: Jazz and Other Four Letter Words, with Cheryl Bentyne: vocals; Jamieson
Trotter: piano; John Clayton, Dan Lutz: bass; Jeff Hamilton, Mike
Shapiro: drums; Larry Koonse, Pat Kelley: guitar; Bob Sheppard,
Kirsten Edkins: saxophones; Walter Fowler: trumpet; Bob McChesney:
trombone on Cafe Pacific Records
Peter Oxley and Nicholas Meier: Chasing Tales on MGP Records
Michael Cain: Sola with James Genus bass and Billy Hart drums.
Erik Firedlander : Illuminations
John Pattitucci's Electric Guitar Quartet : Brooklyn with Adam Rodgers, guitar, Steve Cardenas, guitar, Brian Blade, drums on Three Faces Label.
Lafayette Harris Jr. Trio: Bend the Light with Lonnie Plaxico on bass and Willie Jones III on drums
on Airmen Records
Christian Howes; American Spirit; with Josh Nelson, piano, Hamilton Hardin, organ, Ben Williams, bass, Gregory Hutchinson, drums and Polly Gibbons, vocals on Resonance Records
Best Debut Album: Katie Theroux: Introducing Katie Theroux with guitarist Graham Dechter, tenor saxophonist Roger Neumann and drummer Matt Witek.
Best Historical Release : John Abercrombie: The First Quartet; Arcade with Richie Beirach, George Mraz and Peter Donald on ECM
Best Latin Jazz Album:The Latin Side of Joe Henderson Conrad Herwig with Joe Lovano
About twenty-five miles due north of downtown , a short thirty
minute ride up rte 400, is the Velvet Note possibly the best jazz club in the
Metro Atlanta area. General Manager Tamara Fuller, like many of us a
transplanted New Yorker, started this club almost four years ago with the idea
of creating a club that would appeal to musicians, a place where people could
experience live music in a living room setting with exceptional sound. To that
end she employed an acoustic design engineer to create an atmosphere that
maintains vocal and instrumental fidelity throughout the space. The casual, rug
clad space is curiously located in a renovated retail store in a strip mall
flanked by a Chiropractic office and a Barber Shop. In keeping with the intimate,
living room style there are some small tables, some larger community tables,
some randomly placed chairs and even a comfortable sofa on which to sit and a
rather generous stage that can be seen easily from almost every vantage.
The
venue seats about fifty patrons comfortably and food and drink are available from
a courteous and helpful staff. On this past Saturday evening the Note brought Atanta’s own
Freddy Cole and his quartet in for an evening of story and song. Mr. Cole is a
dapper eighty-four years young and truly one of America’s enduring treasures.
He still commands a subtle baritone whose warmth fills you like the first
sip of a glass of fine cognac. He was joined by his working quartet of Randy
Napoleon on guitar, Elias Bailey on bass and Quentin Baxter on drums. Mr. Cole
is a fine pianist who plays sparingly in the Basie style and who often cites
the Modern Jazz Quartet’s pianist John Lewis as an enduring influence. He actively tours with this group who know
his every move and it is a marvel to witness such organic symbiosis between his
fellow musicians. Mr. Cole is
notoriously known for never pre-arranging his set list preferring to read his
audience and choose his material extemporaneously- keeping his musicians guessing. He has an encyclopedic knowledge of the Great
American Songbook and never uses charts.
At this sold out show, Mr. Cole started the first set with a
song from Frank Sinatra’s repertoire “ A Lovely Way to Spend an Evening.” The
medium tempo song got the audience in the right mood and you could see this
band could swing. The second song was a slow ballad “You’re Bringing the
Dreamer Out in Me” and was originally sung
by his brother Nat in 1958 with the arranger Nelson Riddle. Mr. Cole can make any song bristle with
emotion in his most personal conversational way.
Freddy Cole Singing the Blues
“Wild is Love” is from a self produced Nat Cole musical
score I’m With You, music by Ray Rasch
and lyrics Dotty Wade, again arranged by
the inimitable Nelson Riddle. The show was supposed to be Nat Cole’s entry onto
Broadway but it never caught on. Bassist Bailey pulses the bossa beat as Mr. Cole sang out the boisterous refrain “Wild is Love.”
The sentiment about a man looking for love among many choices is perfectly believable from the octogenarian whose wizened ways clearly come through in the
telling.
Other highlights of Mr. Cole’s performance “I Loved You” It’s
Crazy,” “Old Folks,”“Something Happens to Me” and “Sometimes I Love You”
The quartet is tight and nimble taking the
lead from Mr. Cole with Mr. Napoleon’s facile guitar work being the principle other lead voice in this
group. Mr. Bailey is steadfast in his rhythmic consistency and Mr. Baxter showed
some subtle brush work on occasion. For the most part this group looks to
their leader for direction and respectfully never upstage him, preferring to allow him the deserved spotlight.
With the holiday just around the corner Mr. Cole treated the
audience to a medley of Christmas songs including a down
home blues titled “Blue Christmas.” What
Christmas would be complete without Freddy Cole singing the heartfelt “Christmas
Song” made famous by his brother Nat. The baritone went into the sentimental “Old Days,
Old Times, Old Friends” and ended the evening ended with the playful“Jingles the
Christmas Cat.”
Mr. Cole will be playing at the St. Regis Hotel in NYC on Dec
21st and then reside at Birdland in New
York City from December 22 through 26th. His latest album is Singing the Blues If you plan to be in New York for the Holidays seeing the romantic crooner live would be the perfect gift for that someone special.
There is something magical about a fine piano trio. When musicians
are in sync it is amazing how communicative three pieces can be. When you have the lyrically imaginative
leader Kenny Werner on the keys there is no telling where his fertile imagination
will lead you. On Werner’s latest The Melody,
he is joined in perfect harmony by Johannes Weidenmueller on bass and Ari
Hoenig on drums and between the three of them they create an exquisite
exploration of what it is to be enraptured by melody in its many enduring
forms.
Mr. Werner starts with a wonderfully sensitive rumination on
the popular song “Try to Remember” from the 1960 Broadway musical “The
Fantastiks.” He sets the tone showing us
the inner beauty of his take on the sentiment before he reveals the actual
melody first playing it as a soft lullaby and then letting it breathe, expanding into a more expansive swings
and swaggers at times. Mr. Hoenig and Mr. Weidenmueller are not so much a
rhythm section as color commentators painting the song with their own subtle pastels
and warm tones.
Mr. Werner is no stranger to composition and here he offers
four separate tunes of his own. The first “Who?” is a jagged, rhythmic affair that
uses a repeated motif as the basis on which to explore. The trio seems to intuit the shifts in time
with easy aplomb with Mr. Weidenmueller keeping the motif alive throughout. Mr.
Werner’s touch is a joy of restraint and delicacy as he moves around the motif
with dance-like style
“Balloons,” another Werner original, has a light, airy
introduction on solo piano before entering into its captivating melodic core.
The theme has a child-like, wanderlust quality to its gentle theme expertly
played with wrenching sensitivity. A probing bass solo by Mr. Weidenmueller elicits
images of a dance of wood sprites in a hidden forest.
John Coltrane’s “26-2” is given a jaunty rendering that is
probably the most formidable demonstration of how in sync this trio is. The
three wind and weave their way through the changes in perfect time, a
celebration of one minded playing. Hoenig’s traps and Weidenmueller’s bass
mimicking the same line as Werner’s piano lead, a celebration of symbiosis.
Werner’s lead is always perfectly logical but surprisingly unexpected in a sage
kind of way. Hoenig offers a syncopated drum solo that is tasteful and
unflashy.
Werner returns with another of his own compositions” Voncify
The Emulyans.” The composition moves through a series of cadenced vignettes,
where Hoenig’s military traps seem to set the pace as Werner’s pianistic
overtures find varied directions. The tempo is often changed and the melodic content
is hard to follow but the overall effect is of exploratory rumination. The ending is a gorgeous slow fade on the
theme.
Dave Brubeck is an artist whose work seems to have found few
followers. Here Werner starts “In You Own Sweet Way” in a decidedly different way.
The pianist creates an intro that has a disjointed mechanistic sound which he
carries with some dissonance throughout the piece, normally a straight ahead
sweet melody. When the trio get down to the melody they do so with a creative
flair that employs some swing some syncopation and some style. Werner plays
with the melody at times including some quotes from Bernstein. The group
prances at different paces throughout the song in a facile display of how different
rhythms could dramatically affect the way a song is perceived.
The album ends with Werner’s “Beauty Secrets” with his solo
intro played as a beautiful piano adagio. Werner is one of the most expressive
pianists on the scene today and his touch and sense of poignancy is unmatched
here. The texture of Hoenig’s stick and
cymbal work is the precise compliment to Weidenmueller’s anchored bass and Werner’s
lyrical playing. There is an Americana flavor ala Greensleeves to this one that
is very moving.
There is something very beautiful and unpretentious about
The Melody and Mr. Werner, Mr.
Weidenmuller and Mr. Hoenig have a collectively made listening to it a joy.
When I recently featured three current works from Big Bands
I was called to task for not having included at least one Latin Big Band . Well
certainly that was not by design as there are many Afro Cuban and Latin based
bands that deserve mention so here is one that clearly deserves to be included
in the mix.
When you look at the
cover of Multiverse ,the latest album
from Bobby Sanabria’s Big Band, you are confronted with the serious stare
of its leader. Doffed in a black hat, a graying soul patch and dark shaded
glasses that offer reflections of distant galaxies mirrored on the surface of
his lenses, clearly this self-proclaimed Nuyorican is looking into the universe
for inspiration. Mr. Sanabria’s universe is of course much more down to earth,
it is the universe of diversity, the universality of music in its many varied
and ethically influenced forms that that have made him the musician he is
today. As a quote from the liner notes taken from Nobel Prize winning
poet Octavio Paz states “Every view of
the world that becomes extinct, every culture that disappears, diminishes a
possibility of life.” It is this
sentiment that infuses Mr. Sanabria’s music and his mission.The Multiverse Big
Band is a living, breathing organism that embodies the cross genre diversity
that Mr. Sanabria has come to represent.
As a jazz musician and a courageous proponent of the
Afro-Cuban/Latin Jazz traditions no one has been a more consistent and
passionate spokesman for rallying more wide spread recognition of the Latin
jazz idiom. It was Mr. Sanabria’s vocal and ardent petitioning of NARAS ( the
ruling body for the Grammy Awards ), that helped to re-instate a Grammy award in the category of Latin Jazz, after it had been summarily removed as a viable category for consideration.
On Mulitverse we
find a powerful , well orchestrated group of musicians playing music ranging
from the cinematic to the sublime. The music is unified by a clave driven
rhythm section, but true to its universal theme it contains elements of Latin
dance, straight ahead jazz, modern big band arrangements and even funk and rap.
A case in point is the introductory piece from Don Ellis’s
theme to the movie The French Connection, driven by its hard, clave-centered rhythm
section and pulsing brass choruses, Sanabria and company bring this smokerto a cinematic climax worthy of the movie.
The use of an oddly futuristic sounding electric baritone solo by Danny
Riverais countered by the soaring
plunger trumpet screams of Shareef Clayton before a blistering tenor solo by
Jeff Lederer is met with the Australian bush sounds of the didgeridoo as played
by Chris Washburne. It is as if Mr. Sanabria has created a masterful amalgam of sounds that
cross all barriers of time and space.
“Cachita,”is a slick modern arrangement by Jeremy Fletcher
of the Rafael Hernadez piece. It’s rhumba-like feel incorporates the dance rhythms of Latin music
with tight section arrangements, some boisterous call and response from Hiram “El Pavo” Remon and saxophone solos
of note from John Beaty on alto and Lederer on tenor. The song ends with a clave-driven bass solo by
Leo Traversa.
Fletcher returns with his own contemporary composition “Jump
Shot” with its cha-cha rhythm and its swirling section work. Solos by
Washburne on bass trombone and Lederer on tenor add excitment. As the title implies Sananbria and companies s
deft use of percussive accents makes this one jump.
As if the world needed another version of “Over the Rainbow,”
arranger Andrew Neesley find a way to breathe new life into this classic The band supports vocalist Charnee Wade’s
wonderfully subtle interpretation of these timeless E.Y. Harburg lyrics. The
band plays with warm sensitivity over Wade’s beguiling voice.Time to go home Toto.
The funky Chris
Washburne tune “Wordsworth Ho” has a free feel to it with boisterous choruses
and angular changes in rhythmic direction that is quite contemporary in its
approach. As always in Mr. Sanabria’s bands, soloists are given just enough
space to make a succinct point without becoming a distraction to the whole unit.
Other key selections from this marvelous album include a
Jeff Lederer’s arrangement of Wayne
Shorter’s “Speak No Evil” with its dynamic
sectional chorus work and a fine solo by Peter Branin on tenor. Understanding
that there are no boundaries in music, the song utilizes a timely rap by La Bruja with a
backing vocal chorus from the band,
making this one of the most cross generational songs on the album.
Perhaps the most ambitious piece is Michael Philip Mossman’s
arrangement of this spectacular medley of Ellingtonia titled "Afro-Cuban Jazz Suite
for Ellington.” The suite seamlessly incorporates parts from “
Black and Tan Fantasy” “and “Satin Doll” to name a few and it does so with breezy
facility that makes it look easy. David DeJesus’s alto solo on “I Got It Bad It
A’int Good” is heartfelt.The band
swings on “It Don’t Mean A Thing (If It A’int Got That Swing)” with a slurred
trombone solo by John Beaty and a
rousing Latin chorus section of the theme leading to a trio of gutsy trumpet
solos. A brief sampling of “Body And
Soul” ends this one at the coda with a flurry of bongos, congas and a stirring drum solo courtesy of Mr.Sanabria..
The finale is “The Chicken/From Havana to Harlem-100 years
of Mario Bauza” which is a celebration of Mr. Sanabria’s mentor the trumpet
playing band leader Mario Bauza. The
arrangement of the horn sections have a “Tower of Power” ala “ Brecker Brothers” feel to it as one section
plays melody and others pulse powerfully behind. A rousing Maceo Parker
inspired soul/funk tenor solo by Norbert Stachel is featured and grabs the feel
of this one perfectly. The song leads to a rap by La Bruja, with talks of
the origins of the music, a short Bauza bio and some musical history of the
Afro-Cuban musical experience.
For those who love the power and the synchronicity of eighteen
musicians playing together as one Multiverseis one hard driving band that deserves more
attention. The album was a Grammy nomionee and the band will be playing at
Dizzy’s Club Coca Cola Dec 19th-22nd so if your in New
York for the holidays this is a not to be missed.
Personnel; Bobby Sanabria, leader, arranger, percussion, xylophone and drums; Christian Rivera congas, background vocals, Obanilu Allende, bongo/cenerro; Mathew Gonzalez, bongo, cencerro; Hiram "El Pavo" Remon, lead vocal, back ground vocals; Enrique Haneine, piano; Leo Traversa, bass and background vocals; Trumpets: Kevin Bryan, Shareef Clayton; Jonathan Barnes andn Andrew Neesley; Saxophones:
David DeJesus, Peter Branin; Norbert Stachel; Jeff Lederer, Danny Rivera. Trombones; Dave Miller, Tim Sessions, Joe Beaty, Chris Washburne. Charnee Wade Vocal, La Bruj :Spoken word/rap. Additional Background Vocals:Gene Jeffereson, Mary Gatchell and Georgia Schmidt. Boma Yuba Section: Ernesto Lucar and Gene Marlow.
Who is the hippest hipster? In the world of jazz there has always been a
secret language. A way of communicating that separated those who were in the
know and those who weren’t. An insider’s speak that came from the street and eventually
made its way into the mainstream lexicon precisely because it was so damn "cool."
The words were descriptive like when you wanted to avoid the “heat” referring
to the law. If you were cool you didn’t wear clothes you wore "threads." And if
you were at a gig when the music wasn’t making it you simply "split" with a
simple retort of "later" giving your friends all the information they would
need to know. This hip speak also seeped
into a kind of music, a music that had stories to tell in their own subversive and off-beat way. Here are three stylists that each have their
own distinct way of contributing to this type of music.
Giacomo Gates: Everything
is Cool
The baritone Giacomo Gates has released his latest album aptly titled Everything is Cool , unearthing once forgotten gems from the be bop-cool era, some of which epitomize authentic hip sentiment. On the cover, the perennial
hipster is doffed in his black beret peering at the camera with a tip of his
shades, a throwback to the beat era sense of cool. Opening with Babs Gonzales’s "Everything is Cool" he croons "Twice as high as birds can fly, everything is
cool." Digging deeper into the Gonzales repertoire,
Gates does his version of the slow torch song "Here Today Gone Tomorrow" which
he delivers in his lower register with a heartfelt sigh. On "When Lovers They Lose," another Gonzales
original, Grant Stewart’s sexy tenor looms large as Gates sings with a matter-of-fact resignation of one who knows love lost.
On the confidently hip "If I Were You Baby, I’d Love Me"
Gates tells the tongue in cheek tale of an unabashed narcissist utilizing a
slow sauntering blues as the vehicle. He is backed up by a solid group of
journeymen musicians led by pianist John Di Martino, guitarist Tony Lombardozzi,
bassist Ed Howard, saxophonist Grant Stewart and drummer Willard Dyson. Check it out here:
Gates reprises two swingers"Social Call" and "Hazel Hips" from his regular repertoire with some fine ensemble work
by the group. The surprising choice of Elvis
Costello’s "Almost Blue" is given a simmering torch song approach and Paul Desmond’s "Take Five" finds Gates singing yodel-like ala vocalese to the Iola
Brubeck lyrics with Stewart and Dyson deliver strong performances on this
classic.
Gates own “Who Threw the Glue” is a treasure trove of hipsterism and its "U Bop Shebam" lyrics, bluesy swing and call
out chorus that shouts the names famous jazz musicians at the coda.
A swinging rendition
of trombonist Frank Rosilino’s humorous "Please Don’t Bug Me" is the ultimate cool cat song. A
brusque dismissal of a lover whose time has come, Gates nonchalant delivery is nearly
perfect with some noteworthy solo work by Di Martino, Lombardozzi and the buoyant
bass of Ed Howard.
What could be more hip than taking comedienne Lenny Bruce’s "All
Alone" and making it your own. Gates hip speaks these lines with heartfelt but
acerbic seriousness, like a beat poet on a Greenwich village stage, as pianist
Di Martino deftly adds poignant accents.
If conjuring up the spirit of Lenny Bruce and Babs Gonzales weren’t hip
enough for you, Gates saves Monk’s "Well You Needn’t" for his finale, exquisitely navigating the quirky melody with his pliant voice.
Ben Sidran Blue Camus
Ben Sidran: Blue Camus
Ben Sidran has been playing his particular type of hipster
music for years. Originally he was keyboardist with Steve Miller and Boz Scaggs
in the late sixties. Despite his
rock-jazz credentials it is his vocal delivery and beat poet writing that seems
to qualify him as the hipster he is. Now seventy two, Sidran’s latest release
is titled Blue Camus, a collection of
smooth instrumentals and beat inspired songs He doesn’t sing so much
as speak with a voice that just drips with cool indignation,
especially when he is reciting such metaphysical lines like "It’s all so
dark,
it’s all so clear." The music is played
by Ben on piano, his son Leo on drums, Ricky Peterson on B3 organ and
Billy
Peterson on bass. For the most part the music is straight ahead organ
driven
vamps that allow for a groovin’ background as a set for his wizened
vocal tales. The highlights includes the aforementioned "Blue
Camus," "The King of Harlem" an oblique homage to New York and the
Lewis Carroll
inspired "Wake Me When It’s Over," which
is a reference to the rise of Tea party politics. Sidran’s brand of
subversion offers lyrics like "Because sometimes good
things happen to bad people. But man, bad
people happen to good people every day. You Dig?"
Mark Winkler Jazz and Other Four Letter Words Cafe Pacific CPCD 45125
Mark Winkler: Jazz and
Other Four Letter Words
West Coast coolster Mark Winkler takes another approach to hip
lyrics, he writes his own. On his
latest Jazz and Other Four Letter Words Winkler. opens with "My Idea of A
Good Time." Leading off with a plucky
bass line by Dan Lutz the singer finds
some off-beat ways to express himself
with such lines as "Were I King Kong and the World is in my palm,
all swinging through the city bye and bye, I guess that’s my idea of a good
time." Winkler has an easy, smooth
delivery that breezily attacks the lyrics making them swing. His main band is features Jamieson Trotter on
piano, Mike Trotter on drums and the aforementioned Dan Lutz on bass.
Bringing in obscure material written by two original
hipsters Dave Frishberg and Bob Dorough is a sure fire way to bring Winkler
hipster cred. He does this version of "I’m Hip" with, Manhattan Transfer alumni Cheryl
Bentyne. The two float through the sarcastically self aggrandizing lyrics with
an ease and self confidence that captures the sentiment of the song perfectly.
The five four beat of “Your Cat Plays Piano” is probably the
hippest of Winkler’s songs, with lyrics like "Your cat plays piano mostly on the
black keys, and I can swear he is a jazzer ‘cause he won’t play the melody." Here Winkler employs the services of West
Coast musical cats John Clayton on bass, Jeff Hamilton on drums and Bob
Sheppard on tenor, all powerhouse studio players, and they make this one
special. Winkler has a way of making the strange seem cool, the odd seem aloof
and special. He modulates his voice in perfect time to
Sheppard’s cool saxophone lines on this one.
Winkler can use his pleasing tenor to sing with a deep
sensitivity, as he does on "I Chose the Moon" and "I Never Went Away." On Paul
Simon’s "Have A Good Time" the crooner turns the popular song to a jaunty blues, backed by a brassy horn section with a rousing
trombone solo by Bob McChesney.
The title song, Trotter and Winkler’s "Jazz and Other Four
Letter Words" is a rhythmical chicane that features Winkler’s voice navigating
the stops and breaks with an easy aplomb.
The medley of“In a "New
York Minute" and "The Great City." reminds me a bit of Van Morrison’s "Moondance" Winkler incorporates the varied lyrics from
these homages to New York as if they were written together. Guitarist Larry
Koonse lays down some sweet lines on the break as Clayton and Hamilton provide
the anchored beat. The song takes a turn
at the coda briefly referencing "Autumn in New York."
Gershwin’s "Nice work if You Can Get It" is a well worn
standard that here is given a honky-tonk
approach by Trotter on piano. Winkler croons the up lifting lyrics with sincerity
bringing to mind a barroom tenor playing for tips. Pat Kelley’s guitar solo
adds to the feel.
The finale is an Eames/ Winkler original is a
swinger "Stay Hip" which features Rich Eames on piano and Winkler again fronted
by the superb rhythm section of Clayton,
Hamilton and Koonse.
There appears to be resurgence in offerings from big band
ensembles this year. Big bands have made a vital comeback fueled on by modern,
enlivened arrangements and buttressed by stalwart musicianship. New and
exciting scores, some years in the making, are being offered by an ever increasing
number of composer/arrangers who enlist groups of talented musicians to help
them make their music a reality. The results are some of the year’s most
inspiring and compelling musical offerings.
This revival defies the market driven logic that
dismisses music unless it can be justified on a purely economic basis. In pop music, today’s ephemeral “hit” culture
has homogenized the creative output of many of today’s best selling artists. Manipulated
music machines seem to crank out mostly vacuous sounds that melt into obscurity
almost as fast as they appear, like snowflakes on your heated windshield.
Large ensemble music and orchestras have no such illusory
goal. No matter how economically difficult it is to assemble, compose, arrange
and record these types of groups, they exist because they provide a sound that
simply cannot be duplicated by small ensembles. A big, bold, sometimes brash, sometimes elegant,
orchestrated sound that cannot be created in any other way. For musicians these
bands offer a chance to share in a collaborative effort that rises above
individual expression. Many of these ventures would never see the
light of day without the dedication and drive of their composer/arrangers, the
largess of public/private funding sources and the commitment of so many fine
musicians, studios and patrons of this musical form. Take the power and majesty of well
orchestrated music and add the unpredictable creativity of improvised solos and
you have an art form that some believe is at the apex of man’s artistic musical
achievements.
Several ‘big bands”
have made their mark in contemporary jazz in recent years . The Village
Vanguard Orchestra, The Mingus Legacy Big Band, The Maria Schneider Orchestra ,
The HR Big Band and The Brooklyn Babylon Orchestra of D’Arcy James Argue come
to mind.
Unlike the big bands of the thirties forties , fifties
and even sixties, these guys and gals don’t have the advantage of working
together on the road night after night, living and breathing the music as a team,
honing their parts, tweaking their sounds and most importantly learning the
crucial art of interaction.
Today these bands operate much like film crews making a
movie. The script in this case is the score, which the composer/arranger, much
like a director of a film, may work on for months if not years. Instead of actors,
film editors, cinematographers and prop men each specialists of their
respective crafts, you have the musicians, each masters of their respective instruments
and recording engineers working to capture the fidelity of the sound. This
freelance approach allows the best to come together briefly for a project and
then disperse to their individual careers. The result can be ill conceived or a
Technicolor blockbuster!
Today’s composer/arrangers are utilizing more modern
sounds and techniques creating musical landscapes that can immerse one into a
suspended sensory state. Here are a just three of the offerings that I have had
the pleasure of listening to recently.
John Fedchock: New York Big Band Like It Is Mama MAA1048
John Fedchock’s New
York Big Band Like It Is:
Trombonist/arranger/composer
John Fedchock’s New York Big Band has re-entered the field with his
latest top notch offering Like
It Is. Fedchock has taken some standards from the American Songbook like Arthur Schwartz’s “You the Night and The
Music” Ellington’s “Just Squeeze
Me” and Jay Livingston’s “Never Let Me Go “ and re-imagined them around
the tightly orchestrated sounds of his formidable
New York Band. Not content to play other
people’s music, Fedchock’s own compositions include “Just Sayin’, “ “Hair of The Dog,” Havana” and
“Ten Thirty 30” and are wonderful vehicles for his big band sound- a skillful
blend of brass, reed and rhythm that is superbly executed. He creates exquisite
backdrops for soaring solos by members of his band. His subtle use of subdued
choruses behind sensitive solos allow
for some intimate and expressive ballad work.
Right from the start, the dynamic front line on “You the Night and The Music” contains
an exquisitely paced trombone lead by
Fedchock, and stirring solos by Mark
Vinci on alto and Rich Perry on tenor, making
this swinger a pure joy.
“Just Sayin’ “has an easy “cha cha” vibe with some nice alto
work by Charles Pillow and some steaming trumpet by Barry Ries. Bobby Sanabria’s deft percussive accents add
to the authenticity of the Latin vibe.
Jay Livingston’s “Never Let Me Go” features a lush
arrangement using a multi-layered approach, with Fedchock providing a somber,
achingly beautiful trombone solo that is not to be missed.
The Wayne Shorter inspired “Just Sayin’” is a medium swing tempo
piece with soprano work by Charles Pillow that sails over this groovin’ band until the horn section transition leads
to another moving Fedchock trombone solo.
Cedar Walton’s “Ojos De Rojo.” Is a Latin influenced song
with a stirring piano solo by Allen Farnham. The rhythm section of Dave Rataczak,
Dick Scapola and Bobby Sanabria keep this one on track. Gary Smulyan’s
boisterous baritone provides a raucous voice over the punctuated splashes of
Fedchock’s brass section. At the coda Scott Wendholt’s trumpet trades barbs
with Smulyan’s Bari ending with a rambunctious solo by Ratajczak on drums.
Fedchock’s “Hair of the Dog” is a progressive piece that
starts out slow as if you are dreamily awakening from a stupor, soon you
realize that the only way out is to shake it up again and get yourself out of
this funk. The band simmers until it is
Walt Weiskopf’s excitable tenor solo that brings you around.
Fedchock’s arranging skills are on full display on the
breezy “Havana.” Sanabria’s percussive beat transports one to the sunny shores
of this forbidden city accentuated by an alluring Fedchock trombone solo. The band seems to sway
to the rhythm with a seductive ease as Mark Vinci’s flute swoops over the
backdrop like the Bird of Paradise.
Because every big band owes a debt to Ellington Fedchock
does his interpretation of ” Just
Squeeze Me.” The arranger intersperses some modern,
somewhat displaced choruses over the melodic baritone of Scott Robinson.
Ultimately Robinson s gets a chance to break from the melody and he lends his
own sense of history to his solo with impeccable tone and a modern sense of
harmony. Robinson introduces a series of ascending bellows at the coda that are just stirring.
Barry Ries’s mellow flugelhorn is
featured on the softly stated “For Heaven’s Sake” and the John Fedchock’s “Ten
Thirty 30” ends the set as a hard
driving, up-tempo song inspired by the music of Clifford Brown- the title being
a abbreviation of Brown’s birthday 10-30-30. Appropriately Brownie’s legend is
carried on through a fine solo by trumpeter Scott Wendholt. Fedchock gets his last licks in on trombone
with a JJ Johnson like solo that pulses and bellows behind this well
orchestrated band. Rich Perry is the last soloist and he offers a ruminating
tenor sound that wanders in search of direction before he finds a path and
follows it to conclusion above the pulsing orchestra.
Personnel:
John Fedchock, leader/arranger/trombone; Mark Vinci, alto sax, flute; Charles Pillow, alto sax, soprano sax; Rich Perry, tenor sax, Walt Weiskopf, tenor sax; Gary Smulyan, baritone sax; Scott Robinson, baritone sax; Tony Kadleck, trumpet, flugelhorn; Craig Johnson, trumpet, flugelhorn; Scott Wendholt, trumpet, flugelhorn; John Bailey, trumpet, flugelhorn; Barry Ries, trumpet, flugelhorn; Keith O'Quinn, trombone; Clark Gayton, trombone; George Flynn, bass trombone; Allen Farham, piano; Dick Sarpola, bass; Dave Ratajczak, drums; Bobby Sanabria, percussion; Kim Scharnberg , production assistant.
Ryan Truesdell's Gil Evans Project Lines of Color ASBN 0133
Ryan Truesdell’s Lines of Color:
This year Ryan Truesdell was once
again back at it trawling through previously unearthed works of composer
arranger Gil Evans. He garnered great praise and success with the previously
released Centennial and this time he added some of new gems to some work
previously recorded by Evans for a
“live” recording of the band’s 2014 residency at the Jazz Standard in NY. The resultant CD Lines of Color is a treasure,
documenting what it is like when a great big band, with great charts come together and performs in front of a live and receptive
audience.
Highlights of this album include the
time tested Evans Composition “Time for
the Barracudas”, with its repetitive rhythmic figure leading to a probing
trombone solo by Marshall Gilkes, an exploratory tenor solo by firebrand Donny McCaslin
and some impressive trap works by drummer Lewis Nash.
“Davenport Blues,” is another
favorite with Matt Jodrell’s sensational trumpet solo work, evoking an
authentic New Orleans sound. The collective solos of Ryan Keberle’s trombone, Steve
Wilson's’soprano sax, Marcus Rojas on tuba chorusing behind Jodrell’s trumpet shows Evans technique of
using a superb a backing chorus to lift a soloist performance.
Listen to the seductive swing era
sound of “Avalon Town” which mixes era consistent melodic sounds with more a
modern juxtaposition of discordant ones. Brief but inventive solos abound on
this one by Jodrell, Steve Wilson, Scott Robinson, Dave Pietro, Ryan Keberle
and James Chirillo.
On “Concorde” Evan’s again
employs multiple layers of sounds to create the basic swing before introducing
the voice of Lois Martin’s viola in a
decidedly Americana flavor.
The band is screaming with solo talent
driven to great heights by a superb rhythm section of Jay Anderson on bass,
Frank Kimbrough on piano and Lewis Nash on drums. It works so precisely, like a
fine Swiss movement under Truesdell’s apt direction, that it is hard to single
out any one performance except to say the band is the true star here. Evans
music swings, soars, excites and entertains with an attention to detail and a
reverence that cannot be faked.
The nostalgic feeling of Wendy
Giles vocals on “Can’t We Talk it Over,”
“Easy Living Medley” and “Sunday Drivin’” only adds to the transporting
effect this music has on the listener.
Perhaps the most surprisingly evocative of
songs on the CD is the well worn American Standard Greensleeves,” This song that was originally arranged by
Evans for guitarist Kenny Burrell and was often featured in the master’s own outings. On
this version Truesdell employs the sensitive trombone work of Marshall Gilkes,
who provides just the right amount of modernity to this treasured and moving ode.
The hoping “Gypsy Jump”, a newly
unearthed gem, comes from an arrangement
Evans did when he was with the Claude Thornhill Band back from 1942. The band
plays this with great originality while still preserving the period feel of the
music.
Gil’s “Easy Living Medley” is
perhaps Evans’ most recognizable work.
Despite its languorous pace the arrangements are intricate, subtle and
lush. The band plays with sensitive aplomb recreating the dreamy melody .Solos
by pianist Frank Kimbrough, vocalist Wendy Giles and tenor man Scott Robinson
all add to the magical mood.
The Cole Porter standard “Just
One of Those Things” takes flight with a high flying, introductory soprano sax
solo by the inimitable Steve Wilson. Trombonist Ryan Keberle, with his
bellowing lower register trombone, adds to the freewheeling feel of the song as
arranged. The band cooks with tight, brisk arrangements and after a nice piano
solo by Kimbrough, Wilson takes it back up a notch with a reprise of his
previous soprano solo to the coda.
Truesdell ends the set with “How
High the Moon” which he states in the liner notes was one of the last charts
Evan’s wrote for the Claude Thornhill Orchestra. Solo work by altoist Dave
Pietro, pianist Kimbrough, trombonist Keberle and saxophonist McCaslin are
featured on this medium tempo piece of history.
The band ends on a chorus of exclamation as the crowd applauds
appreciatively.
Personnel:
Ryan Truesdell, conductor; Woodwinds: Jesse Han, Jessica Aura Taskov, Steve Kenyon, Steve Wilson, Dave Pietro, Donny McCaslin, Scott Robinson, Brian Landrus, Tom Christensen, Alden Banta. French Horns: Adam Unsworth, David Peel. Trumpets: Augie Haas, Greg Gisbert, Mat Jodrell. Trombones: Ryan Keberle, Marshall Gilkes. Bass Trombone: George Flynn. Tuba: Marcus Roja, Rhythm Section: Guitar: James Cirillo. Piano: Frank Kimbrough. Bass: Jay Anderson. Drums:
Lewis Nash. Voice: Wendy Gilles. Viola: Lois Martin.
Patrick Williams Home Suite Home BFM 302 062 432 2
Patrick Williams : Home Suite Home
Over the years , arranger/composer
Patrick Williams has been a major force in the creation of some the most dramatic
and exciting orchestral compositions for film, TV and recorded music. He has over
two hundred films to his credit. His work has garnered him a Pulitzer Prize for
his cross genre classical/jazz work titled
An American Concerto . Among countless nominations, Williams has
also garnered two Grammys and four Emmys for his prodigious work.
On his latest effort Home
Suite Home , Mr. Williams has attracted an extraordinary group of West
Coast musicians, many who have worked
their anonymous magic on his scores and in
the studios for years. On this most personal of
projects, Mr. Williams wrote this music with members of his family in mind. Musical
portraits of his wife of fifty four years Catherine and his three children
Elizabeth, Greer, and Patrick B. are the wellspring of his inspiration. In addition Williams wrote tributes to two of
his favorite artists, the arranger Neil Hefti and the great drummer Buddy Rich.
Needless to say the album is a
masterful compilation of modern composing and arranging in the big band
format. Williams demonstrates just how
facile he can be armed with such a large and talented group of musicians.
“52nd Street &
Broadway” features a lush arrangement dedicated to the epicenter of the big
band era and the famous Roseland Ballroom that resided there. Vocalist Patti
Austin is featured fronting this pulsing band that swings in the big band
tradition. Ms. Austin has a powerful instrument
that can hold up well to the big sounds that back her on this love affair to an
era past. Chuck Berghofer’s big bass is prominent and Peter Erskine’s drums
drive this well oiled machine.
“Home Suite Home I” dedicated to
his daughter Elizabeth “The Beautiful Scientist,” has a distinctive ostinato
beat that enters with a declaration that mixes minuet like formality with
modern brass overtones. The various band
sections create tumultuous flows. A walking bass line that leads to a detective
novel like stroll before yielding to
some funky tenor work by horn legend Tom Scott. With the pulsing chorus behind
him West Coast studio stalwart Bob Sheppard lets loose with his own exclamatory
tenor solo that soars to new heights
“Home Suite Home II” is titled “The Dreamer “ dedicated to his son Greer.
This seductive ballad is smooth and delicate. A beautiful alto solo by Dan
Higgins brings this waking dream to life as the band escalates its intensity,
almost trying to break the mood with a wall of layered sound. Pianist Dave
Grusin gently plays a repeating motif as Higgins alto sings the sanguine melody
with the band drifting into and out of consciousness with the dynamics of
Williams’ arrangements.
“Home Suite Home III” , dedicated
to his son Patrick B. “The Real Deal”
starts with a march-like cadence from drummer Peter Erskine. Williams
overlays different registers of brass and reed sounds so skillfully creating a jaunty
stroll over Erskine’s syncopated drum cadence. Then the band hits its stride,
fully synchronized with beautifully realized horn accents. Williams continually
alternates sections from carrying the melody to countering it, shifting times,
masterfully employing tension and release. Mr. Scott offers another raspy tenor
solo that cooks and the band wails in equal intensity. Trumpeter Michael Stever offers a nice open
horn solo.
“A Hefti Dose of Basie “is
Williams homage to both the big band sound of Count Basie and to his longtime arranger
Neil Hefti. This smooth as silk stockings music features the Basie-like single
note piano stroke of Dave Grusin, a muted trumpet solo by Stever and that
big walking bass line by Berghofer.
Williams resurrects his
connection with Frank Sinatra with whom he did two duet albums by arranging “I Get Around” as a duo for Ole Blue Eyes son
Frank Sinatra Jr. who sings this with Tierney Sutton.
“Blue Mist,” written for his wife Catherine, is a
sweepingly beautiful theme that features the beguiling trumpet of Arturo
Sandoval. The composition plays cinematically evoking distant horizons and
hidden vistas before it settles into a slow sauntering ballad. The sensuous
sound of Sandoval’s open bell trumpet with its clean, clarion timbre offers an
inspired cry. Williams changes the tempo to a medium swing as Sandoval his horn for a short bit as the band really starts to
swing. Sandoval returns to open horn with his distinctive tone and brassy ,high
register command at the coda.
Peter Erskine’s traps start “That’s
Rich” dedicated to the great drummer Buddy Rich. The band spells out the lines
leaving breaks for Erskine to solo between in true Rich fashion. Additional highlights are solos by Higgins on
alto, Andy Martin on trombone, Grusin on piano and a swinging sax solo by Tom
Scott. The band powers along through
Williams unified wall of sound arrangement as Erskine accentuates at the breaks
ending in a dramatic drum solo that
Buddy Rich would be proud to call his own.
Personnel: All music Composed and Arranged by Patrick Williams
Piano: Dave Grusin; Bass: chuck Berghofer; Drums: Peter Erskine; Guitar: Dean Parks; Alto Saxes: Dan Higgins, Jeff Driskill. Tenor Saxes: Bob Sheppard, Tom Scott; Baritone Sax: Gene Cipriano.
Trumpets: Wayne Bergeron, Dan Fornero, Bob Summers, Michael Stever. Trombones; Charlie Loper, Andy MArtin, Bob McChesney. Bass Trombone; Craig Gosnell, Percussion: Dan Grecco
Vocalist Patti Austin, Tierney Sutton and Frank Sinatra Jr.
