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| John di Martino Passion Flower: The Music of Billy Strayhorn Sunnyside SSC 4114 |
John’s playing incorporates superb sensitivity, admirable facility, and an assured poise that allows him to extract the best qualities of the soul and spirit of these fine compositions. Di Martino sums up his approach to playing, I “surrender to the ecstasy of making music… if I can feel that joy then I can also transfer that joy to the audience!”
Strayhorn’s work is a cache of gems. With John’s imagination and his attuned band of tenorist Eric Alexander, bassist Boris Kozlov, drummer Lewis Nash and vocalist Raul Midón, these memorable compositions are reimagined and revitalized in new and surprisingly delightful ways.
The sixty-one-year-old Di Martino hails originally from Philadelphia,
“The City of Brotherly Love,” like so many other notable jazz artists of the
last half a century. His piano playing has been influenced by a diverse group
of iconic pianists including Bill Evans, Herbie Hancock, Hank Jones and Horace
Silver. He mastered his craft by studying with the enigmatic pianist/educator Lennie
Tristano, pianist Jimmie Amadie, a Woody Herman alumnus, and with noted pianist
and arranger Don Sebesky.
Di Martino made his way to New York in 1988 after honing his
skills for years as the keyboard player for a house band of a casino in
Atlantic City. This “showtime” experience exposed him to a myriad of musical styles,
genres, and international influences.
Di Martino’s musical skills permit him to “shapeshift,” - seamlessly adapting his playing to the requirements of the music at hand. No wonder he developed such chameleon abilities as he has found himself playing and arranging for such diverse talents as Houston Person, James Moody, Kenny Burrell, Jack Sheldon, David “Fat Head” Newman, George Mraz and Joe Lovano.
Over the years he has become a sought after accompanist and arranger for such proven vocalists as Billy Eckstein, Giacomo Gates, Janis Siegel, Grady Tate, Gloria Lynn, and Freddy Cole. His inherent street-wise affinity for Latin music was refined by his stint with Panamanian flutist Marisco Smith. He later toured with Latin percussionist and bandleader Ray Barretto’s New World Spirit Big Band for several years. and continues that love for Latin music, continuing his present work with the distinguished clarinetist master Paquito D’Rivera.
Di Martino’s musical skills permit him to “shapeshift,” - seamlessly adapting his playing to the requirements of the music at hand. No wonder he developed such chameleon abilities as he has found himself playing and arranging for such diverse talents as Houston Person, James Moody, Kenny Burrell, Jack Sheldon, David “Fat Head” Newman, George Mraz and Joe Lovano.
Over the years he has become a sought after accompanist and arranger for such proven vocalists as Billy Eckstein, Giacomo Gates, Janis Siegel, Grady Tate, Gloria Lynn, and Freddy Cole. His inherent street-wise affinity for Latin music was refined by his stint with Panamanian flutist Marisco Smith. He later toured with Latin percussionist and bandleader Ray Barretto’s New World Spirit Big Band for several years. and continues that love for Latin music, continuing his present work with the distinguished clarinetist master Paquito D’Rivera.
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| Billy Strayhorn photo credit unknown |
On the new cd, Passion Fruit, the music of
Billy Strayhorn is a unifying theme, but Di Martino and his bandmates always seem
to present the music in new and exciting ways. Take the opening “Johnny Come Lately”
which is launched by a strutting bass line by Boris Koslov before the group
enters the pace with a jaunty swing that is infectious. Di Martino’s piano
skills are immediately on display as he probs the ascending and descending
spirit of this melody. Tenor master Eric Alexander adds his own signature warm tone
and the trap master Lewis Nash creates a swirl of inventive percussive
enthusiasm. You cannot help but get drawn in by this band’s enthusiasm for the music.
Billy Strayhorn reportedly wrote his sophisticated masterpiece
“Lush Life” at the age of sixteen, an almost unimaginable feat. The song is
coveted for its lyrical maturity and musical complexity. Strayhorn originally debuted
it with vocalist Kay Davis at Carnegie Hall in 1948. The composition challenges the vocalist with quick
changes. It commands the singer to precisely execute slides and leaps, all the while maintaining
a debonair, sagacious sensibility of forlorn. Notably successful recordings of this
song have included a version by baritone Johnny Hartman,
collaborating with saxophonist John Coltrane and a superb take recorded by chanteuse
Sarah Vaughan. But even an iconic vocalist like Frank Sinatra, working to
record this song with the great Nelson Riddle in 1958, was unsatisfied with his
attempts to successfully navigate the complex changes and abandoned recording the song, never to make it part of his repertoire.
A sought after accompanist for countless vocalists of all
types, John di Martino has developed his own inherent sixth sense of what makes
a vocalist suited to render a specific composition. Here, his sensitive duet
with the emotive vocalist Raul Midón is a
stunningly effective treatment of this pensive Strayhorn classic. Di Martino’s
yearning piano- expressive, complimentary but never overwhelming- creates the perfect tableaux for Midón’s expressive voice. Together they bring to life Strayhorn’s disheartening
words and one would be hard-pressed to find a more genuinely moving rendition
of this beautiful composition. Easily, this alone is worth the price of
admission.
“Rain Check” opens with a slick, tight-brushed snare entry
by Nash and features some mellifluous tenor work by Alexander that swells and
ebbs with the changes. Di Martino’s piano solos always firmly guide you through
the stated melody, but he can add short familiar musical ideas tangentially that he weaves into the music flawlessly.
“Star-Crossed Lovers” is a gorgeous slow-paced composition that
is played with delicate restraint as an expressive vehicle for both Alexander
and Di Martino. Alexander’s tenor, at his best, is tonally burnished, emotively
strong but purposefully subdued for emphasis. Di Martino’s piano is warm and shimmers
with a beauty and sensitivity that radiates from his ability to find that joy
in the music he is always looking for.
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| John Di Martino photo by The Cuban Bridge |
“Isfahan” is one of my favorite Strayhorn compositions. I
have heard tenor master Joe Henderson play this one to great effect. Di Martino
utilizes Alexander’s precise and gorgeous intonation and Kozlov’s plucky bass
to make this one special. Di Martino creates an inventive solo that works so
well over the strong walking bass lines and Nash’s subtle snare and cymbal
driven pace. The group trades solos and the interaction of these simpatico
musicians is a treat.
The remaining album is a cornucopia of expertly played Strayhorn
classics. The slow languishing “Chelsea Bridge” delights and the imaginative “Daydream”
is lively and uplifting. Drummer Lewis Nash creates a precise cadenced pulse for
the exotic “Passion Flower,” with Alexander’s deep-throated tenor being
featured as the lead voice. Di Martino’s
piano and the rhythm section are predominantly adding deft accompaniment, judicially
applied aural accents to the music, as Alexander is given the stage to subtly
explore harmonic ideas on his saxophone. When Di Martino solos, he carves himself
out a brief musical path, a flurry of gorgeous lines that seem to just dance
with the melody.
“U.M.M.G.” is a more obscure composition that is one of the
more energetically driven paces on the album. The cd also includes the
Ellington Orchestra’s memorable “Take the A Train” and the middle eastern-inspired
“Absinthe,” with some of Di Martino’s most inventive improvisations and Alexander stretching out.
“A Flower is a Lovesome Thing” is one of Strayhorn’s more
romantic compositions, as is the final cut “Lotus Blossom.” It’s great to hear John
take the time to feature himself as a soloist on these gorgeous songs. Di
Martino has a mastery of his keyboard with a skilled touch and an inventive
harmonic grasp of how to make the songs draw out the best of the composer’s
intentions.
“Blood Count” was the last composition written by Strayhorn
at a time when the composer discovered that he was struck with terminal cancer. The music drips of melancholy, almost
desperation and was written specifically to be played by Ellington altoist Johnny Hodges. Perhaps one of the most memorable renditions of this music was recorded later by tenor saxophonist Stan Getz, who made the song one of the signature pieces of his repertoire.
Di Martino smarty employs Alexander’s Getzian tone to bring out the sheer forlornness that the music evokes, and the tenorist plays with impressive emotion and depth. Pairing these two musicians on this aching composition is a testimony to their affinity. Hopefully, this collaboration will be explored in the near future. The performance is one of the cd’s highlights, with Di Martino and Alexander together, artfully extracting some of the essences of Strayhorn’s most empathetic music.
Di Martino smarty employs Alexander’s Getzian tone to bring out the sheer forlornness that the music evokes, and the tenorist plays with impressive emotion and depth. Pairing these two musicians on this aching composition is a testimony to their affinity. Hopefully, this collaboration will be explored in the near future. The performance is one of the cd’s highlights, with Di Martino and Alexander together, artfully extracting some of the essences of Strayhorn’s most empathetic music.
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