A Drum Less Trio - Allison, Cardenas and Nash Explores Boundaries with "Triological"

 

Allison, Cardenas & Nash- Triological-SunnysideSSC-1811

The trio of Allison, Cardenas and Nash, as they are known, released their latest album titled Triological on Sunnyside Records this past April. If you have had the privilege of hearing these guys work before, either as sidemen, members of respected big bands/orchestras or as leaders of their own ensembles, then you are already aware of the copious talent these three musicians have.

For those who are unaware, Ben Allison is a vibrant bass player/composer/educator. He is also one of founders and creative director of the formative alliance, the Jazz Composer’s Collective in NYC, that from 1992-2005 promoted the creation and performance of creative, forward-looking jazz. His work first came to my attention with his group Man Size Safe’s album Little Things Run the World from 2008. The superb guitarist Steve Cardenas was also a member of that group, and I got to see that group perform in Brooklyn back in that year. I subsequently saw Allison and group with the performance artist Joey Arias at Carnegie Hall. I have reviewed several of his fine releases.

Cardenas was a member of the drummer Paul Motion’s Electric Be Bop Band and was with bassist Charlie Haden’s Liberation Music Orchestra for ten years.  I was also able to see Cardenas perform as a member of pianist Jon Cowherd’s talented Mercy Project when they performed in Portland, OR in Feb of 2023. I have enjoyed his work on his  Blue Has a Range and enjoyed his work with bassist John Patitucci and the drummer Adam Nussbaum..

Ted Nash has been a multi-woodwind member of Wynton Marsalis’s Jazz at Lincoln Center Jazz Orchestra from 1998 through 2024!  I have heard him play in that orchestra on several occasions. He is the son of Dick Nash and the nephew of Ted Nash; both were first call Hollywood studio musicians who worked predominantly with the composer/arranger Henry Mancini.  Ted’s Presidential Suite:Eight Variations on Freedom, a big band suite released in 2016, won a Grammy in 2017.

Ted Nash, Ben Allison and Steve Cardenas (photo credit unknown)

This gifted trio’s first recording was Quiet Revolution, from 2018, explored the music of guitarist Jim Hall and reedist Jimmy Guiffre. Guiffre’s inventive drum less trio concept became the impetus for this trio’s future explorations, expanding the concept that a reed, guitar and bass could generate their own internal rhythmic drive through thoughtful interplay. 

In 2019 they released Somewhere Else which featured the music of West Side Story and the work of composer Leonard Bernstein. The trio released Healing Power-The Music of Carla Bley in 2020, and in 2024 they released Tell the Birds I Said Hello, a celebration of the rhymically displaced and harmonically rich music of pianist Herbie Nichols. It was only inevitable that this dynamic threesome, a trio so adept at interpretating other people’s compositions, would eventually release an album that featured their own original compositions. Thus, the genesis of the latest release, Triological.

Ten compositions, four by Allison and three each by Cardenas and Nash, make up this all-original offering. The inspiration for composing can often be found in previously composed, influentially residual, impressions that emerge from seeds of other people’s work. The music has elements of chamber jazz on this offering. The three reach a quiet, sensitivity that reaches for musical boundaries and can only be reached by musically empathetic artists willing to explore tonal and rhythmic boundaries. This album does all that and more.

Allison’s opening composure, “See Forever,” is an easy, mellow, sauntering piece that the bassist speaks of as being the product of a stream of consciousness approach. He finds this song the perfect vehicle for his vintage 1967 Hofner electric bass. Nash’s tenor is sonorous and Cardenas’ guitar is light and airy as the three weave around separately and  at times in sync with each other. Allison admits that there is a late fifties “easy listening” feel to this one, and he credits being somewhat influenced by the seminal work of conductor/composer Henry Mancini. Emulation of a great composer is hardly a weakness, and we will see this approach being somewhat thematic throughout the album.

Guitarist Cardenas’ “Puddle Jumper” is a flowing, bubbling piece that originally developed from the opening melodic lines that the guitarist was playing with and recorded on a voice memo, only to be left for development at a later date. There is a quiescent to this beautiful, melodically repeating line that emanates to the listener. It’s like a tonic to whatever may be ailing or disturbing you; just under four minutes of tranquility.

Ted Nash’s “Burnt Toast & Avocado” opens with a sensitive acoustic bass entre before Nash’s tubular clarinet takes a sinewy solo that lulls you like a snake charmer. Cardenas follows with his own exploratory, uncluttered solo that rings with sensitivity, before Allison’s throbbing bass lines resonate with sustain and authority.

Allison’s lively “Fellas with Umbrellas” is a composition that has two sources of inspiration. Initially Allison wrote the melody  over the chord changes of bassist Steve Swallow’s composition “Ladies in Mercedes.” An opening staccato bass line frames Nash’s gorgeous descending lines on his tonally rich tenor. Allison’s acoustic bass solo dances with aplomb; a sustained resonance that is subtly comped by Cardenas’s feather strumming. When the guitarist takes his turn, Allison’s strong rhythmic pace allows Cardenas to fearlessly explore the harmonic possibilities of the melody. Surprisingly, Allison mentions that the composition also had another great composer, Michel LeGrand, in mind. LeGrand’s cinematic soundtrack from The Umbrellas of Cherbourg clearly was in Allison’s mind when he titled this one. It turns out, Allison, in talking to Swallow about this composition, admitted that he too was influenced by LeGrand. The world of music can clearly be a small, small world, but one that is constantly renewing itself with new artists and new ideas of interpretation.

The album continues with the film-noirish “Milton,” an Allison composition previously released on his Moments Inside from 2021. Nash’s tenor is a marvel of luscious tonal delight. Allison again utilizes his Hofner electric bass, as Cardenas offers a solo accentuated by his use of a tremolo effect. The contrast between the metronomic bass lines, the trembling guitar lines, and the legato tenor lines make this sonically a treat.

“By Heart” is a Cardenas almost Americana style ballad that opens with the guitarist’s slow, sensitive opening lines that are repeated in sync by the three musicians. Cardenas’ guitar solo is short and poignant before Nash’s tenor adds to the pensive mode. Allison’s bass just hums with sustain and includes some higher register lines before the music returns to the opening lines to the coda.

Nash’s “For Bill” is one of my favorite compositions of the album. Nash used Bill Evans’ “Time Remembered” as his inspiration. The music opens with bass and guitar before the tenor enters with the melody line. There is patient, unhurried approach that clearly honors Evans’ own approach to music. Nash’s tenor tantalizingly navigates the sinewy lines with unshowy confidence and with rich harmonic ideas that don’t wander too far from the melody.  Cardenas’ accompaniment is intuitive and splendid. When he solos, it’s always airy, unobtrusive; always meaningful. Allison’s bass rings with a rhythmic presence that few can match. He always offering surprisingly inventive lines that accentuate the instruments vibrant possibilities.

“Back Home” is a return to the roots of the guitarist’s influence back in Kansas City, Missouri and his early time with pianist Jay McShann. With a loping bass line and tandem playing by Cardenas on electric guitar and Nash on tenor saxophone, the music swells with back home comfort. Nash is so welcomingly melodic, and Cardenas’ guitar sometimes has a comping feeling that recalls the sound of a delicately hammered vibraphone. 

Nash’s “Ida’s Spoon” is supposedly reimagined from Victor Young’s classic “Stella by Starlight”.  The music has the flow and momentum of a cryptic Lenny Tristano song where the lead instruments guitar and tenor weave themselves into a tapestry of sounds with no apparent direction. Nash claims saxophonist Warne Marsh’s as an inspiration on this one. Cardenas’ guitar work is at its most abstract here, and Allison’s bass is as free-flowing as we have heard.

The finale is Allison’s “Peace Out There” and reprises the sound of Nash’s warm, woody-toned clarinet. Allison claims that this was originally a work that had Jimmy Guiffre in mind, but as it developed, he feels it was more inspired by Carla Bley and her abstract “Mornings Out There.” There is parts with quickly played staccato lines followed by a more pastoral section where Allison’s electric bass and Cardenas’s guitar lines are played in unison, as Nash’s clarinet probes the atmosphere of the music. Quite beautiful, ambient and peaceful.                                  

The Art of the Song Captured by Tierney Sutton and Tamir Hendelman on "SPRING"

 

Tierney Sutton and Tamir Hendelman-Spring-BFM Music

The deservedly acclaimed vocalist Tierney Sutton and the virtuosic pianist Tamir Hendelman join forces in an intimate duo creating a beautiful album, Spring. Self-produced by Sutton and released in February 2026, this album finds these two superb musicians telepathically complimenting each other’s ideas with thoughtfulness and finesse. Take an unrushed hour of your time to listen to how well the art of the song can be realized in the hands of two masters. Spring should please even the most discerning listeners.

I first caught Sutton and her husband/guitarist Serge Merhaud when they performed in a quartet with vocalist Kate McGarry and guitarist Keith Ganz at the Velvet Note in Alpharetta, GA back in July of 2016.  You can check out my review of that performance here. Unfortunately, Ms. Sutton was suffering from laryngitis on that date, and while she bravely soldiered through the performance, she was clearly struggling to deliver her best.

Sutton has been nominated for a Grammy nine times, and while she has been denied the prize so far, her repeated nominations speak volumes to this woman’s popularity and talent. Tamir Hendelman is a formidable pianist who has been the preferred accompaniest to the likes of Natalie Cole, Barbara Streisand and Roberta Gambarini, not to mention serving as the pianist with the Clayton-Hamilton Jazz Orchestra. These two create magic.

If Spring is received as well as this fine work deserves, this album should receive another Grammy nomination and may finally garner Sutton a well-deserved Grammy win. Only time will tell.

Tamir Hendelman and Tierney Sutton (Photo credit unknown)

Spring is a season that speaks to rebirth, growth and promise. Spring, the album, takes that concept and invigorates the art of the song by reinvention, thoughtful interplay and a patient approach that allows Sutton to breathe new life and meaning into the lyrics of these beautiful songs. The music features compositions by Antônio Carlos Jobim, Paul Simon, George Gershwin, Hoagy Carmichael, Peggy Lee and Michel Legrand. The title cut by the Brazilian guitarist/composer Dorival Caymmi was introduced to Sutton by Hendelman for this album. The wordsmith magic of Johnny Mercer and the legendary team of Alan and Marilyn Bergman (Alan served as a mentor to Sutton prior to his death in 2025) make this collection the perfect vehicle for these two to create an intimate, sensitive, musical conversation. Sutton is a consummate storyteller, and it’s never more apparent when the astutely chosen material gives her the framework on which to build her own imaginative interpretations.

“Double Rainbow” is a Jobim composition that opens the album. The pianist’s intro is glorious, and Sutton’s vocalese is transcendent, modulating effortlessly. Her voice is a supple instrument that leaps and dances with splendor and joy. Hendelman’s pianistic excursions are rich and lush.

“Waters of March,” another Jobim composition, was popularized in the original Portuguese on the release of the Brazilian chanteuse Elis Regina in 1973. The song is about the cyclical nature of life. Sutton’s voice and Hendelman’s tinkling piano introduce a rain-like shower of sound before she navigates the quick, pointillistic lines with precision and flexible accuracy. Playful, hopeful and fun.

Paul Simon is perhaps one of the most respected composers of the last fifty years. His folk ballad “April, Come She Will” is transformed by Sutton, a dusky metaphorical story of the seasonal markers of the coming and going of a lover. Hendelman’s intro glistens. The two bring a eloquence to this story, a realization that the relationship inevitably changes with seasons and time, never to be possessed, just to be remembered.

Song genie George Gershwin is represented on his “S Wonderful,” a show tune from the musical Funny Face from 1927. The song was written for a dance scene that featured Fred and his sister Adele Sinatra. In the film version from 1957, it united Fred Astaire, this time with Audrey Hepburn. This song is cheerful and high-spirited and while it doesn’t seem to link back to the spring theme of the album, Sutton opens it with her own unique intro. She scats in unison with the pianist's lines and he offers some of his most dynamic solo playing of the album. The two quicken the pace as Sutton instrumentalizes her voice effectively and with speed. A daring arrangement that is joyous and impressive.

Hoagy Carmichael wrote “I Get Along Without You Very Well” with the lyrics inspired by a poem. It was handed to Carmichael anonymously and was later found to be written by Jane Brown Thompson. The poignant lyrics are sung so earnestly by Sutton and brilliantly accompanied by Hendelman. The pianist is impressionistic, layering his ideas and interweaving with Sutton’s marvelously emotive voice.

The popular vocalist Peggy Lee is credited with composing “Thing’s Are Swinging.” Sutton and Hendelman raise the temperature by taking this to full throttle swing mode.

Brazilian composer Dorival Caymmi’s “Spring” offers a sensitive ballad, and it becomes the title of the album. With lines like “Spring holds in her arms a bunch of daffodils, the possibility, a warmer day will arrive” this song erupts with hope and renewal. Sutton’s voice expresses the sentiment honestly. Her own personal experiences are knitted into fabric of the music, enlivening the message in these lyrics. Hendelman’s piano never fails to be complimentary.

Tierney Sutton (photo credit unknown)

My personal favorite on Spring is a song that has been recorded by multiple chanteuses  including Ella, Sarah, Cassandra, Carmen, Betty, Sinne, Bette and Norah, to jazzers like Phil Woods, Stanley Turrentine, George Garzone, and Stan Getz. This popularity tells you the song offers a lot to work with for a creative musician. No matter what version you have loved this one should touch you. “Spring Can Really Hang You Up the Most” is written by Tommy Wolf with lyrics by Fran Landesman. The song is a quiet gem and Sutton and Hendleman make this one their own. The story is a classic barstool lament, a cry in your beer ballad. Sutton’s interpretation is evocative with pathos and resignation, and Hendelman’s piano allows her the space. Sutton has a sixth sense of how to play this one and she captures the essence of the emotional reality that is so perfectly portrayed by this classic.  The reality that a lost love can have long lingering feelings of regret.

The remaining album offers additional surprises with Frank Loesser’s waltz- like “Spring Will Be A Little Late this Year,” featuring some beautiful piano work by Hendelman. Johnny Mercer’s swinging “Spring, Spring, Spring” which finds Sutton exercising some of her acrobatic vocalese to great effect and skillfully navigating the quick-worded lyrics to this playful tune. Hendelman features some fine stride-like, ragtime inspired piano work in accompaniment.

Michel Legrand was a master of composing for films. His “You Must Believe in Spring” was written for the French film “Le Demoiselle de Rochefort” and has been a source for several interpretations, probably the most famous was a collaboration by Bill Evans and Tony Bennett from their album Together Again from 1976. Sutton and Hendelman do a touching take on this lovely ballad. It’s important to revive some of the canon's  great film scores and LeGrand's work certainly fits that bill. Film scores often add to people’s experience and connect viewers with the films, and they are an important part of our artistic heritage. Hendelman’s solo was sublime. Sutton offers a gorgeous vocal interpretation that would certainly put a smile on Legrand's face. 

The closing composition, “L.O.V.E.” was written by the German  composer/bandleader Bert Kaempfert specifically for Nat Cole King. This one is full of rambunctiousness and requires swift, skilled virtuosity by both Hendelman and Sutton. The two don't disappoint and the song is a pure romp of joy.

              

Tony Bennett mesmerizes at Atlanta’ Symphony Hall July 24, 2018

On a warm Tuesday night, at Atlanta’s beautiful Symphony Hall, a beloved figure of American music entertained an adoring audience. The maestro, Tony Bennett, quickly approaching his ninety-second birthday in August, embodied what is meant by the Mack Gordon lyrics “You Make Me Feel So Young.” Energized by the sold-out crowd, many who came to pay homage to a lifetime of over sixty years of epic performance art, Bennett entered the stage to a standing ovation and to the music of Michel Legrand’s marvelous “Watch What Happens.”  The place was charged. The symbiotic relationship between the warm and humble crooner and his audience was palpable. This exchange of energy is the very elixir that keeps the man vibrant, relevant and endearing. He is loved and adored, and he absorbs this tremendous outpour with rare humility and grace, which makes us love him even more.

His voice started with a raspy, slightly gravelly tone and a somewhat diminished range, but what he now lacks in vocal acuity he more than makes up with in his profound understanding of how to deliver a lyric. He is a consummate storyteller who captivates your imagination with his rich embellishment of its meaning. Take his wonderful rendition of the Gordon Jenkins classic “This is All I Ask.”  The lyrics now so much more relevant for a man in his nineties then when he first sang it back in 1963 at the age of forty-three. “As I approach the prime of my life, I find I have the time of my life, learning to enjoy at my leisure all the simple pleasures. And so, I happily concede, this is all I ask, this is all I need.”  The audience responded with a spontaneous round of applause as he sang these words to life.

In a conversation with Marc Meyers on his blog Jazz Wax in 2017, Bennett explained the importance of his relationship with the audience.

"I listen to the audience and feel their enthusiasm. Then I go along with that. I feel their spirit. I'm reacting to what's happening out there, and that's how the show becomes a reality. Once I know the audience is enjoying me, that they love what I'm doing, I'll do something different in response. It's almost as if we're having a conversation in the dark."

Bennett’s vitality was remarkable. Throughout the one-hour performance he never sat once, only occasionally leaning on the piano.  He walked erectly and with confidence, occasionally circling his bandmates and pointing to them, generously sharing the spotlight, encouraging the audience to shower his fellow musicians with applause. The band was made up of guitarist Gray Sargent, pianist Tom Rainier, bassist Marshall Wood and drummer Harold Jones. Since Bennett admittedly doesn’t prepare specific endings for the songs he elects to sing, the band must be capable of responding instantly to his flights of improvisation, which they did for the most part seamlessly.

Bennett and company ran through the Great American Songbook, swinging with Gershwin’s “I Got Rhythm” done in double time. A master of timing and dynamics, Bennett switched to the Ellington classic “In My Solitude,” where he first sang with restrained aplomb. He skillfully built the tension along the way until the coda, where he surprised many with an explosive ending that he belted out with affirmation, much to the delight of the crowd.

He ran through the repertoire, with most songs timing in at the radio-friendly three-minute mark. The songs included “It Amazes Me,” “Steppin’ Out with My Baby,” “But Beautiful,” “Our Love is Here to Stay,” “My Foolish Heart,” and “Because of You.”  Bennett proceeded with a short medley that included Hank Williams “Cold, Cold Heart,” one of his early hits “Rags to Riches” and his classic “Who Can I Turn To,” which has long been a staple of his repertoire. The music continued with “Just in Time” and “Boulevard of Broken Dreams” and was followed by “The Good Life” which found the singer shouting the words “Wake Up, kiss the good life goodbye” in a powerful display of passion and bravado. It was almost as if he the wise nonagenarian was shaking the audience by the lapels, imploring them to enjoy the life they have every minute of every day. His fans responded several times during the evening to give Bennett a standing ovation. The unspoken question in everyone’s mind was “How can this guy still do what he does at such a high level?” The answer- It’s all about the love. The love Bennett has for his craft, the love his audience showers on him because of his honest integrity and warmth and the love of the music that seems eternal in its message, especially when delivered by one of the all-time masters of the art of singing.

The program continued with “The Music Never Ends” which was decidedly appropriate for this tireless performer. Guitarist Sargent moved centerstage to do a moving duo with Bennett on the Johnny Mandel standard “The Shadow of Your Smile” from the 1964 movie The Sandpiper which had the crowd salivating for more.  Bennett was warmed by the rapturous response and so he mined some more of his treasure trove continuing with Stevie Wonder’s “For Once in My Life” and then giving the audience what they were all waiting for, his signature song “I Left My Heart in San Francisco” which despite his diminishing range he pulled off with an amazing display of sheer will and polish. Sensing his audience was peaking, the master showman continued with “Who Cares” before finishing for the finale “Fly Me to the Moon.”  His voice carrying the seventeen hundred seat hall even without the aid of a microphone.

Bennett embraced himself in a demonstrative gesture, showing his deep appreciation for his audience, throwing them hugs and kisses, raising his hand upward in solidarity, basking in the adulation and was almost hesitant to finally leave the stage. But as he has once opined, timing is an important part of entertaining.  

"Know when to get off. You can't stay out there too long. You have to be aware when you've done enough. That often happens at the high point of an audience's reaction during the evening. When I hear that moment, I often say to myself  'I can't get a stronger reaction than this.' I usually leave soon after, on that high note."

Mr. Bennett, with all due respect, you can never stay too long in my book.

Here is one of my favorite Bennett collaborations with the great pianist Bill Evans from 1976. It's just timeless.