Posi-Tone's Swingtet Celebrates the Label's Thirtieth Year with Style on "In Jazz We Trust"

Posi-Tone Swingtet In Jazz We Trust: Posi-Tone Records

For those who enjoy straight ahead jazz with no excuses, Posi Tone Records has always delivered in an uncompromising fashion since the inception of the label in 1995. On February 28, 2025, co-owners Producer Marc Free and Engineer Nick O'Toole, released their celebration of the label's thirty-year milestone with a fantastic album, Posi-Tone Swingtet's In God Jazz We that highlights their mission and celebrates the music with a star studded ten man band. The album  features many of the label's stalwart musicians including pianist Art Hirahara, trumpet/flugelhorn master Alex Sipiagin, trombonist/educator Michael Dease, tenor saxophonist Diego Rivera, alto saxophonist/flutist Patrick Cornelius, bass ace Boris Kozlov and the powerful drummer Rudy Royston.

The music, all but one of the selections composed by the musicians themselves, is a testament to just how symbiotic these musicians have developed as a group. It  reinforces just how in-tune Free and O'Toole are when they assemble and record a group like this, usually providing the right environment and encouragement to create and capture on tape a magical musical experience. 

In Jazz We Trust is no different. Few albums come out of the box with such unified, in synch excitement, proficiency and enthusiasm. The opener is titled "Invocation" and is composed by drummer Rudy Royston. Royston, one of the eras most sought after drummers, can often be seen on Pos-Tone projects. He also can be seen collaborating frequently with guitar ace Bill Frisell, saxophonist JD Allen and trumpeter Dave Douglas to name just a few. On we are treated to the brilliant rhythm section of Royston and bassist extraordinaire Boris Kozlov, who also anchors the Charles Mingus Big Band. Trumpet phenom Alex Sipiagin produces a soaring trumpet solo that shows grace and fluidity, and we hear pianist Art Hirahara adding inventive accompaniment.

The trombonist Steve Davis, a one time Posi-Tone artist, is the composer of "Free Time" and is provides some nice space for tenorist Diego Rivera to shine. Michael Dease's trombone work here is a joy- facile, fluid and creative- and we hear some beautiful interaction between Dease and Kozlov that is telepathic. 

One of my favorites is the quick paced swinger "Mal's Totem" written by Rivera. Kozlov and Royston push the rhythm beautifully, as Rivera's tenor is at his most creative here.

Kozlov's "Below the Line" finds the versatile Hirahara on Fender Rhodes lending an airy feel to this one.  The music has a moody feel to it and Dease navigates the terrain with measured style. Royston opens it up with some increased pace and syncopation and Kozlov's probing bass also adds to the mix before the tune returns to opening refrain.

Sipiagin's "Mirror" is a gorgeous ballad that features some killing trumpet work by Alex bringing new heights to the tune's pathos. Patrick Cornelius' alto cascades his lines with sensitivity to the theme.

Dease's  "Simmer," a tune that builds tension with Kozlov's repeating bass lines as it unfolds. Sipiagin's warm flugelhorn is another delight, as Kozlov's bass probes, percolates, and he raises the temperature to the higher ground. Dease's trombone work is just so bubbly, joyous, and inventive. Rivera and Cornelius trade lines in a smoking exchange of ideas. What really stands out is the horn sections and how tight and unified they sound. Bravo, just is pure beauty and Royston's drums just boil like a roiling cauldron. It doesn't get much better than this.

Art Hirahara's "Stepped Out" has a cosmopolitan feel. Cornelius offers a swinging alto solo as Kozlov and Royston carry the beat like a fine time piece. Hirahara plays some of his most uplifting piano here and Kozlov has plucky bass solo before the horns return to the opening lines.

The album continues with the staccato opening of Dease's "Don't Look Back Behind You" with Royston, Kozlov and Hirahara playing the lines in synch. The horn section repeats the liens in unison before Hirahira and the rhythm section take it off to the races. Dease adds a smoking trombone solo to this swinger, man can this guy play! You can't help but tap your feet and Royston's explosive drum work and solo here is incendiary as the horn section brings it to a definitive exclamation point.

Cornelius brings his tango-like "Le Rendez-vous Final" where he plays flute. The group create the dance-like feel with Kozlov's bass setting the pace with Royston's astute trap work. Hirahara's piano work is quite expressive with a European feel to it. 

The album closes with the swinger Misha Tsiganov's "Changing Times."  Its a treat to hear this section make such great music and you can feel the way each soloist adds his own touches to this romp. Rivera, Dease, Cornelius, Sipagin and Hirahara  all take their turns in succession and you can feel these guys are having fun. The set ends with some explosive drum work at the coda from Royston as the section adds there own exclamations. 

In Jazz We Trust is just pure delight, a true tribute to the label's thirtieth anniversary. I have not heard many release this year that swing as hard or deliver with such imbedded joy then this one. One can only hope Free and O'Toole can somehow manage to corral these guys once more time to create some more of this magic.

Taking the higher path "Upstream" by Alex Sipiagin

ALEX SIPIAGIN'S UPSTREAM:  Posi-Tone PR-219

The Russian trumpeter Alex Sipiagin releases a new album titled Upstream, on May 7th and this fine offering is propulsive, modernly melodic, and superbly played.

Sipiagin contributes five impressive compositions for this record and his bandmates add three others along with one gorgeous Wayne Shorter ballad for good measure. Posi-Tone producer Marc Free continues to reveal an uncanny talent to identify distinctive players and match them up with like-minded musicians to great success. On Upstream, Sipiagin is joined by pianist Art Hirahara, bassist Boris Kozlov and drummer Rudy Royston and together these guys can elevate your heart rate with excitement, dazzle your mind with their taste or pull at your heartstrings with poignancy.  

Trumpet legend Randy Brecker said "...there is a full spectrum of many moods and emotions on this great album..." "...one of his best many excellent albums."

This album is simply a joy, and if you're like me, it will be on auto replay on your both headphones and your iPhone.

Alex Sipiagin is one of those first-call trumpet players that if you do not recognize his name, you have certainly heard his work before. Since his arrival from his native Russia in 1991, Sipiagin’s distinctive, precise and melodic sensibilities have been heard in the orchestra’s trumpet sections for Gil Evans, Swiss Composer George Gruntz’s Concert Jazz Band, bassist Dave Holland’s Octet and Big Bands, Michael Brecker’s award-winning Quindectet and Conrad Herwig’s Latin Side Orchestras. Alex has been a member of the great Mingus Big Band since 1996, and I last saw him in that great band almost two years ago at the Jazz Standard.

Despite being often seen as a first-call orchestra trumpet section voice, Alex has worked extensively as a leader, with seventeen other releases since 1998. He is a founding member of the group Opus 5, which includes Seamus Blake (s), David Kikoski (p), Boris Kozlov (b) and Donald Edwards(dr).

The title Upstream refers to Alex’s desire to maintain “intensity and desire” in his artistic life. Consequently, he likes to go against the current and swim upstream of the fray. This album is Sipiagin’s artistic representation of that never-ending search. 

The opener “Call” is the artist’s expression of an overflow of emotions that sometimes just happens as if by a force of nature outside of your control. An explosion of expression as Sipiagin’s trumpet is like a clarion call that bubbles with emotive and powerful bursts. The group responds with equal energy and well-controlled sympathetic kineticism. 

The pianist Art Hirahara’s beautiful “Echo Canyon” allows the listener’s elevated pulse to take a breath for a moment. The music has a more pensive feel, with Sipiagin using the warmer sound of Flugelhorn to great effect, playing out front of his bandmate’s sensitive accompaniment. Hirahara’s piano solo is splendid and Sipiagin reaches some gorgeous high register notes that just soar. 

Alex’s “Sight” has a switchback, complex pattern that is brilliantly executed by this formidable rhythm section. Hirahara plays on what sounds like a Rhodes piano and offers an airy solo. Sipiagin’s trumpet is focused, precise, and always melodic. Sipiagin’s compositions musically inspire and are advanced both harmonically and melodically and yet executed with aplomb and taste. 

Another of the leader’s compositions is the scorching “SipaTham” which is an acronym of the first letters of Alex and his wife Mellissa Tham’s last names. There is a volcanic eruption of expression in these songs. Like “Sight”, “SipaTham” were both created when artistic creativity was being quarantined from all normal outside world activity by the pandemic. Sipiagin successfully used the time to compose and it shows how his energy was being redirected into this amazing music. His bandmates undoubtedly felt that being able to tap into this music’s energy would be cathartic for them when this was finally recorded, and it shows. Alex’s playing is on fire, and the group is on a mission. Hirahara and Kozlov are in beautiful sync and Rudy Royston’s drum work is particularly propulsive and takes you to a new level of involvement. This one is special.

Boris Kozlov is a top-notch bassist who I have had the privilege of seeing play in several different settings. Here Alex takes Boris’ composition “Magic Square” on a fusion take that features Hirahara’s searching Rhodes, Kozlov’s electric bass, and Sipiagin’s tart muted trumpet. Royston’s drum work is spectacular and erupts with a flurry of syncopation that overflows like an overheated cauldron.

Sipiagin’s “Rain” is a sensitive ballad that was inspired by waiting for a loved one to be released from a hospital while it was relentlessly raining. It is these moments, being unprepared and being subjected to live’s uncertainties, that can provide inspiration. Sipiagin’s trumpet is played beautifully on this and you can feel his release of angst, the sincerity in his expression of thanks, and the mastery of his command that allows him to gorgeously express those feelings.

“Shura” is another Kozlov composition that is played in 6/8 as requested by Alex and was written in humor and named for the trumpeter by his nickname. I can’t get enough of Alex’s facility and clear tone. Many people play the trumpet well, but few with such authority and joy. Royston’s drums fill up the song copiously, especially at the coda, and Kozlov and Hirahara accompany brilliantly.

Wayne Shorter’s “Miyako” is a gorgeous ballad and Sipiagin’s flugelhorn simply needs to be heard to be appreciated. Kozlov’s bass solo is fluid and eloquent. Royston’s cymbal and tom work are impressive. 

The title song “Upstream” returns to the energy level previously offered in the  Sipiagin compositions covered earlier n this album. According to the artist’s notes, some of the melodies in “Upstream” were inspired by a Russian folk song. The folk song was in turn inspired by a painting by Ilya Repin titled “Barge Haulers on the Volga,” which depicts exhausted workers depleted by the strenuous work and the heat of the sun. 

"Upstream" is a quick-moving song featuring Sipiagin’s declarative trumpet, Hirahara’s melodic Rhodes, Kozlov’s probing bass, and Royston’s roiling drum work. The heat rises-the energy level is driven into overdrive activity-lead by Sipiagin’s piercing high register work. Royston’s drum solo is like a whirlwind of percussion inventiveness and worth the price of admission.

https://soundcloud.com/posi-tone-records/sight-022321-master-24-01

The Art of Bill Frisell Live at City WInery in Atlanta

Thomas Morgan, Bill Frisell and Rudy Royston at Atlanta's City Winery

This past Wednesday night, April 4th, at Atlanta’s City Winery the world class guitarist and innovator Bill Frisell and his trio thrilled a nearly full house of faithful followers, aspiring guitarists and a few curious uninitiated listeners with an unforgettable night of music. The Winery can accommodate over three hundred in the confines of its comfortable, sonically pleasing wine cellar-like atmosphere. Frisell just released a fabulous solo album titled Music Is on the Okeh label on March 16, 2018.  On this night Frisell was joined by Thomas Morgan on upright bass and Rudy Royston on drums.

The now sixty-seven-year old Frisell has been playing his distinctive style of guitar for the better part of three decades. He signed to Manfred Eicher’s ECM label back in the early eighties and became the virtual house guitarist for the label. He has had long term associations with the eclectic experimental composer/saxophonist John Zorn from his early days in New York. In the early 2000’s he was a part of the influential drummer Paul Motian’s trio with saxophonist Joe Lovano. The list of collaborators he has worked with is a who’s who of the contemporary and avant-garde music world during the last quarter century. Along the way Frisell has developed his own unique sound- a mix of bluegrass, country, surfer rock, Americana, jazz, fusion and sophisticated electronics- that has made him one the most adventurous musicians and a sought-after collaborator. His work has been nominated for a Grammy on four occasions in 2005, 2009, 2016 and 2018 and he won once for Unspeakable in the Best Contemporary Jazz Album category for 2005.

The Guitarist Bill Frisell at Atlanta's City Winery 

Bill Frisell has the casual appearance of a disheveled, absent-minded professor, with his shock of white spiky hair, horn- rimmed glasses and his loosely fitting jacket and jeans. You could see this guy working part-time fixing motorcycles in a neighborhood garage or repairing old radios in his basement, but when he plugs in his Telecaster-style guitar and connects to  his array of electronic wizardry he becomes a master of the universe. The universe of the sound that he so deftly creates.

The guitarist started off with a series of harmonics, tones generated from his guitar that resonate with sympathetic frequencies. He is master of harnessing them to great effect and he used them to introduce the Henry Mancini classic “Moon River.”  The audience listened intently as he conjured up a delicate repeating motif on his guitar, looping it and then harmonizing to it. When the melody became apparent the crowd let out a collective sigh of acknowledgment.

One suspects that Frisell’s trio mates must have big ears to play with this man as his playing appears to be snatched from the ether, rather than firmly pre-planned. Morgan has been playing with Frisell since 2016 and they recently did a highly acclaimed duo release last year titled Small Town. Royston is a sought-after drummer whose work can be heard all over the gamut. His stylistic approach was first heard with Frisell on the guitarist’s 2010 Grammy nominated recording History Mystery. Together these three musicians showed just how empathetically connected three people can be, responding as Frisell utilized a series of surprising electronic embellishments to create cascading effects before transitioning into the familiar theme from the James Bond thriller “You Only Live Twice.”  He has a penchant for creatively using looping to allow him to create multiple layers of expression on a repeating motif.

Frisell’s repertoire often features movie soundtracks and on this evening besides the aforementioned “Moon River,” and the Bond theme “You Only Live Twice,” he later played another Bond theme from the movie “Goldfinger” to the delight of the audience. His surfer sounding guitar resonating clear, concise lines as the memorable melodies hung in the air like wisps of smoke from Bond’s lethal Beretta.  The man wastes no motion in his playing. He is a quiet leader that directs in an unobtrusive, firm but nuanced manner. Morgan’s bass is clear and resonant, and Royston is a master of delicate shading.

The group continued with a walking blues, which might have been Frisell’s “Winslow Homer,” which the guitarist played in his own fractured way, with Morgan and Royston each being featured on solos. The group went onto a more ethereal sounding piece, a rambling waltz that was reminiscent of the late John Abercrombie’s work. Interestingly Frisell was a highlight performer at a memorial concert held for the recently deceased guitarist at Brooklyn’s Roulette on March 26, 2018.

No jazz concert, although that is too restrictive of a title for Frisell's work, would be complete without at least one Thelonious Monk song. Frisell and company didn’t disappoint, doing their own take on the quirky “Epistrophy.”  Here the group was at its most intuitive, perhaps because of the familiarity of the song, but it was marvelous to watch the exquisite interplay, especially between Frisell and Royston who operates without bombast. The drummer created a jungle beat that added surprising rhythmic interest and an inherent sense of swing. Morgan had one of his most creative solos of the evening.

The real surprise of the evening  was Frisell’s marvelous take on the John McLaughlin classic “Arjen’s Bag.” Later renamed “Follow Your Heart,” from Mclaughlin’s 1969 album Extrapolation; Frisell played this on his own album, Ghost Town, from 2000. To hear Frisell’s take on this guitar classic some nearly fifty years later was a true treat, bringing me back to when guitar virtuosity was my idea of true greatness. The guitarist’s introduction cleverly hinted at the song before revealing his true intent. Royston played timely rim shots as Morgan plucked away creating the atmospheric feel of the song authentically. Frisell employed some distortion and echo to his guitar before he went into the song’s distinctive lead in. I had never heard anyone do this “live” and for me it was just so good to hear it played again with such creative energy and inspired tremolo and electronic effects.

The band continued with one of Frisell’s own compositions, this one played with phaser effects titled “it Should Have Happened A Long Time Ago” which is on his last release Small Town with Thomas Morgan. It is a song that has a nostalgic feel to it, one that you might hear coming from a guitarist, albeit a very good one, sitting on his front porch musing away the late afternoon. Frisell plays the sing-song line like the repeating verses of a melancholic nursey rhyme. His footboard of electronic wizardry produces sounds that at times mimic a harpsichord or perhaps a mandolin. Then he takes it to another level, accelerating the pace, developing it into a rhythmic jig of sorts, playing in a style that to my ears had native American elements to it, before returning to the main theme. An impressive display of what seem to be on the spot improvisation on a theme.

Transitioning into the theme from “Goldfinger,” Frisell recreated that echoed, twangy guitar on the John Barry composition that Shirley Bassey made famous. It was pure fun listening to this master explore this movie classic.

Frisell disengaged from his guitar and took to the stage, introducing his bandmates in his own inimitably folksy way. In a brief humorous interlude, he warned the audience of the excesses of eating locally made Maple Bacon ice cream, which he said gave him the sniffles.

After unrelenting applause, the band returned for an encore with what Frisell called his theme song, the Americana standard, “Oh Shenandoah.”  This poignant song, a lament from one that longs for a return to home, was the perfect vehicle for Frisell to spin his magic. His guitar took on multiple tones each one more expressive than the last as Morgan and Royston played the cadenced march like a mournful dirge. But Frisell is an optimist, and he skillfully transitioned from the somber Shenandoah into the uplifting Burt Bacharach composition “What the World Needs Now,” ending the show on an encouragingly upbeat note. The audience was completely taken by this wonderful performance. As a fellow audience member stated to me, Frisell takes you to another place.

The City Winery should be applauded for continuing to up its game, providing a comfortable, inviting and sonically pleasing venue and booking world class musicians like Bill Frisell to perform here in Atlanta. Hopefully people will respond accordingly and continue to support this premier music venue.

Michael Blake's World Time Zone Plays his latest work "Contrasts in Indivdualism" at the Kitano

Michael Blake at the Kitano

On a Thursday night at the elegant Kitano Jazz club in Manhattan the saxophonist Michael Blake premiered his latest work Contrasts in Individualism,”  a series of compositions inspired by two of the twentieth century’s most influential pre-bop tenor men, Coleman Hawkins and Lester Young.

Mr. Blake, a Canadian born in Montreal and raised in Vancouver, Canada, has made New York his home since 1986. The mild- mannered musician has been playing with some of the most progressive musicians on the scene as a member of John Lurie’s Lounge Lizards, Ben Allison’s Medicine Wheel, The Herbie Nichols Project, Steven Bernstein’s  Millennial Territory Orchestra, and the progressive instrumental  group Slow Poke with Dave Tronzo, Tony Scherr and Kenny Wollesen, along with several self-led groups.  

In a world littered with saxophonists who prefer to play a fusillade of notes to express their ideas, Michael Blake has refreshingly chosen to follow a more measured approach.  As a student of the pre-bop masters Coleman Hawkins and Lester Young and predecessors in their lineage, Mr. Blake has a developed a style that incorporates many of the techniques that made them so unique, combining them with his own signature sound that has been strongly influenced by soul, funk, rhythm and blues and rock. The result is a unique voice on the instrument that plays with conviction that is refreshingly free from pyrotechnics or affectation.  An accomplished technician, Mr. Blake is comfortable playing at those difficult slow tempos that often can require holding a note with pristine intonation or uttering a gut bucket growl to make a point. That’s not to say the man can’t swing or dazzle, his tenor can flow like a spring-fed mountain stream occasionally bursting into fast paced waves of swirling eddy currents. Having been touted as an up and coming voice on tenor saxophone for quite a while it’s time to acknowledge that Michael Blake is one of the leading proponents of the instrument today. He debuted this music with his all-star band  World Time Zone which features Ben Allison on bass, Frank Kimbrough on piano and Rudy Royston on drums.

Mr. Blake’s compositional skills were on display with Contrast in Individualism, a commission made possible by a grant from the Doris Duke Charitable Trust. Comparing and contrasting two iconic players like Coleman Hawkins and Lester Young could be a daunting task for any saxophonist.  Mr. Blake’s told the audience that his own approach was to share what he loved about their music through his own contemporary lens.

The set started out with a song titled “Skinny Dip” a slow, strip club like shuffle that featured some pointillist bass lines by Ben Allison and some raspy Hawk-inspired playing by Blake. His escalating tenor solo built in measured crescendos with tasty licks that had a very sensuous side to them.  Mr. Kimbrough took a solo spot that was contrastingly more jagged but steeped in the blues. Mr. Allison and Mr. Royston kept the rhythm going in the spirit of the song.

Mr. Blake related the story behind the title of his next composition “Some Tiddy Boom Please” a reference to something Lester Young said to a drummer wanting him to kick it (the beat) a little. Mr. Blake starts out with an unaccompanied  saxophone solo that  is both expressive-he hums into his reed creating harmonic distortions- and rhythmically flowing as his horn pours out a funky groove, a pattern of notes that remind me a little of Eddie Harris’ work.  The band picks up the vamp as Blake continues, occasionally using some Hawkish rasp to his tenor. Some nice playing by pianist Kimbrough takes the whole thing into a loose swing mode.  Drummer Royston and bassist Allison have great chemistry and they carry the rhythm with a joyous bounce that is infectious. Blake ends the piece with a rousing solo that has elements of Young, Getz and a playful Blake in it to the delight of the crowd.

Mr. Blake introduced the next composition as a mini-suite titled “Letters in Disguise.” The slow ruminating opening featured some facile bass work by Ben Allison who plays with child-like excitement. Mr. Royston conjures up percussive sounds that somehow fit perfectly as Mr. Blake plays in a slow, sensuous tone that darkly aches with pathos and expression. Mr. Kimbrough then opens the second part of the suite with a quickened pace that bursts us into the daylight. The pianist is an accomplished player who had moments of inspiration during his solo that brought a smile to the faces of his fellow musicians as well as an appreciative audience. Mr. Kimbrough took the song to a new height of excitement that then allowed equally inspired playing by Mr. Blake. Blake’s soloing produced a series of measures that were inventive and at times derivative of the style of the masters he was acknowledging. The song ended as it began with Mr. Blake holding the final softly blown notes from the lowest register of his horn in a guttural hum that faded to a hushed whisper.

The next song was a straight blues in the style of Lester Young titled “Good Day for Pres.” Mr. Blake can certainly play with the beautiful lyricism of the “Pres.” when he wants to. He has a command of tone and attack that is quite impressive and like Lester he knows the value of space.  Mr. Allison, who besides being a talented composer in his own right, is a helluva bass player,  played an impressive extended bass solo, incorporating slides, bends and leaps, as Royston played gingerly on hi-hat and rim accompaniment. Not to be outdone Mr. Kimbrough provided his own impressive Monkish solo that had a way of making this simple blues into a far from simple song. The song ended in a slow, deliberate musical drawl that showed just how in tune these musicians are despite having little practice with the material.

The Coleman Hawkins inspired  “Hawk’s Rhumba " was the next composition. Mr. Blake nailed the Hawk’s tawny, luxurious sound on his tenor. The phrasing was impeccable and the warm, liquid tone was a treat to behold. Mr. Royston, never content to merely hold a beat, colored the song with flourishes of old time chick-a-boom style snares and shimmering cymbals. As Michael said to the audience at the conclusion of this one “If that didn’t get you in the mood I don’t know what would.”

The final composition of the set titled “The Ambassadors” had a slightly Caribbean beat mildly reminiscent of Sonny Rollins’ “St. Thomas.” Over the cadenced trap work of Royston, Mr. Blake played his free flowing tenor, interjecting s unique humming into his reed that created some interesting harmonic overtones. This was perhaps the most modern and contemporary music of the evening. Mr. Kimbrough played with sensitive accompaniment as Mr. Blake wailed. The band stopped in mid-stream allowing Mr. Blake center stage to develop ideas on his solo horn which again included his harmonic overtone work.  The band then, led by Mr. Kimbrough, went into a more funky groove that was steeped in R & B and had the audience bobbing their heads to the beat. Mr. Blake’s compositions and the nature of his band mates is such that the music is not rigid and it seems to develop organically as ideas percolate between these musicians, who have a rare rapport. It is as much a product of the written chart as it is of the ether from which these artists pull ideas and build upon them in sympathetic union.

For that reason Michael Blake’s World Time Zone is one of those bands that is best savored live. Catch them perform Mr. Blake's Contrasts in Individualism if you can.

While not this particular music, here is a sample of Michael Blake's work:

At Fifty Years Old the Trumpeter Dave Douglas takes his Music to the Fifty States

Dave Douglas at Firehouse 12

On March 24^th of this year the creative musician Dave Douglas turned fifty years old. The trumpeter decided to celebrate this personal milestone by  starting a tour with his quintet that would take him to all fifty states of the union. On Friday evening, in New Haven CT, the Douglas quintet brought their music to the state of CT. Mr. Douglas had last been at the Firehouse back in October of 2005, the first year the now established venue had started their remarkable quest to present top quality music in the beautifully renovated firehouse on Crown Street.  Eight years later Douglas has blossomed as both an artist and a composer. His music is a skillful amalgam of many elements of jazz, American and European folk, avant-garde, Klezmer and classical forms that has influenced his psyche along the way. To many, he represents the epitome of the independent artist, who despite the difficulties of a shrinking music industry, has managed to find his niche and flourish doing it his way. Since 1993 the prolific artist has released over thirty albums as a leader, the last 17 on his own label Greenleaf Music which he started in 2005.

His latest quintet is a brilliant young, adventurous group that includes the pianist Matt Mitchell, the tenor saxophonist Jon Irabagon, the bassist Linda Oh and the drummer Rudy Royston.  On this night at the Firehouse the only change in personnel was the bassist Chris Tordini who took over duties for Linda Oh.

The Firehouse 12 is the perfect setting to experience an artist like Douglas. Entering the compact, starkly beautiful venue- a chrysalis that allows you to watch up close the immersion of a butterfly-you get the feel of being a part of a privileged elite.  You are enveloped by the artist’s vision and with an artist like Douglas it is a profoundly moving experience.

Dave Douglas Quintet

The set started out with the dirge-like“The Law of Historical Memory” from his latest album Time Travel, with a piano ostinato by pianist Matt Mitchell and some rolling drums by Rudy Roylston. The front line of Irabagon  and Douglas playing solemn lines in perfect synchronization. 

The band got into a swinging “Bridge to Nowhere” with its Monk-like phrasing. I hear elements of Dizzy and Freddie in Douglas’s trumpet solos with a tremendous introspective edge that make them deeply personal. Drummer Roylston and Bassist Tordini anchor the music which is at times a difficult task.

On the beautifully touching “Be Still My Soul”, a hymn that features Todini’s solemn ,bellowing bass, and a marvelous dual line by Irabagon and Douglas, the inventive Roylston predominantly plays cymbals as Douglas reaches to the higher register during his solo in a passionate serenade. The song is a part of Douglas’s 2012 release  Be Still,  which is a  compilation of hymns and songs favored by the trumpeters late mother who passed away in 2011. Knowing she was dying, she requested that her son  play some of these songs at her funeral and the poignancy of this music to Mr. Douglas is palpable in his playing.

Time Travel The Dave Douglas Quintet

“Beware of Doug” is a song Mr. Douglas explained was based on his experience at a concert camp in Colorado. An aging Mountain Lion, named Doug by the locals would unnervingly wander through the camp where Mr. Douglas was staying. The raucous fast paced music had an sense of adventure to it, with Irabagon and Douglas leading the way. Mr. Iragabon, the winner of the 2008 Thelonious Monk Saxophone competition, is a fluid player with a deep resonant tone.  He masterfully negotiates his lines with the ease of a veteran and seems the perfect foil for his front line partner Mr.Douglas. Irabagon uses honks, slurs, screeches and deadened flaps during his solos. He pronates his toes and lifts himself on the balls of his feet during particularly reaching parts.  In contrast Douglas is more pensive in his approach, using penetrating, liquid lines, that is until he reaches for the stars. The trumpeter pushes out his higher register notes with a fury that overtakes his face in a rush of blushing color that approaches crimson. He is totally absorbed in his music and he reels you in like a fish on a hook drawn to the glitter of the stunningly attractive gleam of the lure.

Dave Douglas

Perhaps the most moving piece of the night was Mr. Douglas’ poignantly evocative duet work with pianist Matt Mitchell on the hymn  “Wither Must I Wander.”  Pianist Mitchell is new to me. For the predominance of the night he played a rhythmic left hand and a dancing right, but his sound is glass-like, translucent. When he dances in crescendos up and down the keyboard it’s like listening to the crystals on a massive chandelier being blown gently in the wind. So when Mr. Douglas plays this extraordinarily moving song, his trumpet’s clarion call is framed within Mr. Mitchell’s opulent glass palace. When Mr. Tordini and Mr. Royston join the song they do so with the most profound reverence with Royston playing cotton mallets and the bassist adding burnished chords. The song builds to a triumphant explosion of hope with Douglas’s human voice-like sound coming from his horn. The audience sat in stunned silence, realizing they had witnessed something special , until the spell snapped and  they broke out into  appreciative  applause.

Be Still The Dave Douglas Quintet

The final song of the first set was titled “The Pidgeon and the Pie.” Mr. Douglas starts out with a catchy repeating line relentlessly builds up tension. Royston is especially cacophonous playing all over the entire drum kit, as Irabagon and Douglas continually ascend behind Matt Mitchell’s repeating piano lines. Saxophonist Irabagon solo, using repeated circular vamps that he builds from. He searches these ideas creating rhythmic loops within himself from which he emerges with new ideas, almost like a centrifuge whirling his admixture to the outer edges to discover what was embedded within. Mitchell offers a dazzlingly robust piano solo that has a wandering elegance. Royston’s powerful drive is backed by Tordini’s pulsing bass. The trumpeter and the saxophonist use the last few minutes of the song to bring it to a soft landing.

In speaking to Mr. Douglas after the set he indicated that he has many more states to go to complete his goal of bringing his music to the outer reaches of the country.  To those who wish to see him here is a link to a schedule of his tour.

Contemporary Bassist & Composer Ben Allison plays Carnegie Hall and fittingly celebrates New York.

As the epicenter of modern jazz, New York City has always been a magical lodestone, irresistibly attracting talented musicians at every stage of their development and careers. The city offers an unparalleled opportunity for musicians to play and collaborate with legendary performers, teaching mentors and talented peers, providing the fertile environment essential for inspiration and creativity.

The composer/bassist Ben Allison came to New York City from nearby New Haven, CT in the late 1980’s, drawn by the same irrepressible need to participate, to absorb, to create. I first saw Allison performing in the inauspicious basement of the Brooklyn Public Library, at Grand Army Plaza, back in April of 2008 (see my jazz.com review of that show here.) At that time Allison was performing with his group “Man Size Safe,” a tongue in cheek reference to a strongbox reportedly kept in then Vice President Dick Cheney’s office. Admittedly, being attracted to the audacity of the title of his group, I also found the music surprisingly fresh, intelligently conceived and masterfully executed. Allison was able to attract a variety of talented young musicians who bought into his music, making it come to life.

On Friday evening the Ben Allison odyssey achieved a significant milestone, playing a prestigious concert at Carnegie Hall’s Zankel Auditorium. His music has steadily matured. His most recent album Action/Refraction made my best of 2011 list and I was anxious to see his latest group perform “live”. On this momentous evening Allison was joined by his long time friends and collaborators, the tasteful guitarist Steve Cardenas and talented saxophonist Michael Blake. His rhythm section was comprised of the effervescent drummer Rudy Royston and the amazingly adroit percussionist
Rogerio Boccato. Firebrand guitarist Brandon Seabrook provided edginess with raw, rock-inspired licks, his clever use of electronics and some unorthodox banjo playing. The performance and drag artist Joey Arias, who dressed in both elegant and proactive attire, lent a farcical, musical theater-like atmosphere to a few of the numbers.

Ben dedicated the show to his adopted home of New York and started the set with his composition “Roll Credits," a cinematic piece from his Little Things Run the World cd from 2007. Saxophonist Michael Blake stated the melody line, with guitarists Cardenas, Seabrook and bassist Allison keeping the ostinato background flowing. Blake is capable of a great range of emotions from his tenor. Eliciting a silky smooth, Dexter Gordon-like tonality one minute, instantaneously changing to a gruff, raw and guttural sound reminiscent of a back alley speakeasy in the very next breath.

Allison’s “Platypus” from his 9th album Think Free was next on the playlist. After Ben briefly extolled on the unique evolution of the Platypus, Brandon Seabrook introduced the song with an electronic guitar riff. The energy from Seabrook is frenetic and palpable and Allison seems to feed off the afterglow of this kinetic player. His solid bodied guitar sound can be searing and jagged in stark contrast to Cardenas’ more fluid, warmer toned, semi-hollow bodied sound. Blake adds soprano to the mix and the tune grooves behind Allison’s bass and Royston’s populsive drums which are explosive at the ending. Rogerio Boccato, who I first saw play with saxophonist Kenny Garrett, is an especially intuitive percussionist. Boccato's arsenal of sounds, in combination with Royston’s rolling toms and Allison’s snapping bass lines create as formidable a rhythm section as you’ll find anywhere.

Allison wrote a new tune for this very special concert and he titled it “DAVE” for "Digital Awareness Vector Emulation”. This is pure performance piece and a likely homage to the Kubrick/Clarke masterpiece “2001 a Space Odyssey” for the new digital world. Joey Arias, dressed in elegant drag, sang the droning automatronic words “I cannot allow you to disconnect me Dave.” as he danced robotic moves and used controlled screeches to match the errie sounds emanating from Seabrook’s guitar and Blake’s soprano. While not my cup of tea, the audience was mesmerized, as the group provided mind bending, experimental, musical performance art.

One of Allison’s most enduring melodies is the rambling “Fred” also from his Think Free cd. Brandon Seabrook played an impressive banjo that included some unorthodox strumming and wild bowing. I missed hearing Jenny Scheinman’s haunting electric violin from the original recording, but the combined voices of Seabrook’s banjo, Cardenas’ guitar and Blake’s soprano offered their own rewards.


From the Dick Cheney repertoire, Allison revived his song “Tricky Dick” with Michael Blake and Steve Cardenas playing melody as Seabrook and the rhythm section set the background.

The fractured “Broken” brought Joey Arias back to the stage, this time donning a provocative skin revealing, black lingerie outfit. Seabrook utilized multiple electronic synth-like effects on his guitar. Arias screeched, amazingly in tune, prancing across and fluttering his black stocking-clad legs from a prone position on the floor from center stage. Quoting the audacious queen Joey “Who needs words when you have vibrations.”

Often inspired by the music and events of his times, Allison’s witty deconstruction of popular songs is one of his most engaging attributes and has let him cross over into a wider audience than is generally afforded most jazz artists. He has included treatments of John Lennon’s “Jealous Guy”, Donny Hathaway’s “Someday We’ll All Be Free”, Neil Young’s “Philadelphia” and P.J. Harvey’s “Missed” to his repertoire.

On “Green Al,” influenced ever so slightly by the pop/soul singer Al Green and equally borrowing from the cinematic music associated with James Bond movies, Allison somehow pulls off this weird juxtaposition. You find yourself relating to Ben’s creative blend of the familiar and the mysterious. The song featured exceptional performances by Rogerio Boccato, Rudy Royston and a tenor solo by Michael Blake that was particularly fetching.



This concert was as much a celebration of Allison the composer as it was as Allison the musician. Ben appropriately limited his musical selections to his own compositions. A growing body of work that speaks for itself.

The encore was the brilliant “Man Size Safe” from his album Little Things that Run the World. It was a joyous celebration and a good representation of the man's music; interesting, approachable, relevant and fun. The crowd was pleased and gave the group a well deserved standing ovation.
The Ben Allison Group will be on tour through June 22, 2012 at various venues around the country so if you get the opportunity to see them near you be sure to make the effort, you won't be disappointed.