How Hip Can You Be About "You"? The latest by Giacomo Gates.

You : Giacomo Gates : Savant SCD 2189

Baritone vocalist Giacomo Gates has just released his latest album You on the Savant label with an accomplished backing trio that includes the pianist Tim Ray, the bassist John Lockwood and the drummer Jim Lattini. Gates trained ear allows him to reinterpret music often overlooked or underappreciated by others. His inherent musicality and a unique hip approach to vocalizing lyrics allow this vocalist/storyteller to mine the hidden gold in the songs he chooses to sing. 

Gates has previously released albums that follow a theme, like his The Revolution Will Be Jazz: The Songs of Gil Scott-Heron from 2011, Miles Tones: Giacomo Gates Sings the Music of Miles Davis from 2013, and What Time Is It from 2017. In each case Gates’ keen intuition to reimagine the thematic music shows how a tuned-in artist can expand one’s perception of the meaning of these classic compositions.  

On You, Gates has chosen eighteen different compositions, most under three minutes in duration, to weave the thematic essence of this album- songs that emphasize someone else, someone whose significance is animated by the singer’s delivery, someone who is familiar, one who the listener knows, or even someone like You.

Gates baritone is a warm, resonant instrument that he employs with an unpretentious sense of cool. His voice engulfs you with a revelation that this is a  knowing person. He has perceived wisdom in his voice that seems to come from a place where life has been lived and foibles have been experienced. Like a wizened sage who has been there and done that.

Gates sings the words of telling stories penned by songwriting team artists like Bob Russell and Duke Ellington, Ned Washington and Hoagy Carmichael, Dorothy Fields and Jimmy McHugh, Johnny Mercer and Jimmy Van Heusen, Coleman Hawkins and Thelonius Monk, and even Lucky Thompson to name just a few. These are all well-worn compositions that have been visited by others before, but Gates’ delivery and the banter he creates inside this music offers a fresh perspective, a clarity to the listener about the nuances embedded in this music. Listen to Giacomo Gates singing and you're taking a course in life with Socrates or maybe more likely Lenny Bruce. To this, Gates vocal approach is a passing of the musical baton that he carries from some of his vocalist heroes like Babs Gonzales, Jon Henricks, Mark Murphy, and Eddie Jefferson.

Giacomo Gates (photo by R. Miriello)

The album opens with a swinging “Exactly Like You” and Gates weaves multiple songs into the jazz pastiche he creates including elements of Ellington’s “Take the A Train,” Michel Legrand’s “Watch What Happens,” and even Jobim’s “The Girl from Ipanema.” Only a musical history student like Gates can skillfully link into being these disparate approaches so seamlessly?

Storytelling is what this music is all about and Gates expertly personalizes his delivery on his improvised intro to “I Can’t Give You Anything but Love,” worth the price of admission by itself.

Check out the hip “With Plenty of Money and You” and dig the walking bass line from John Lockwood. There is always a knowing commentary in Gates' delivery, with his tongue-in-cheek humor that puts a smile on your face, he relates how bright love could be if only he had money.

The Ellingtonian “I Didn’t Know About You” is a classic torch ballad that Gates brands with his own brand of soul. Just wonderful to hear this song so well brought to life with just the right amount of sincerity.

If you appreciate the judiciously used skill of scatting (using the voice to imitate an improvising instrument like a saxophone) then check out Gates’ on “The Nearness of You.”  His voice flows like a slick skiff’s hull through a calm sea, seamless.

Another delight on this wonderful album is Billy Eckstine’s luscious “I Want to Talk About You,” with a beautiful piano solo by Tim Ray. The sensitive “PS I Love You” is a classic Johnny Mercer torch song that demonstrates just how deep Gates’ understanding is of the meaning behind the words of this love song. The swinging “Are You Havin' Any Fun” is just joyous fun. Mercer’s “I Remember You” is a Gates must hear, with some of the trio’s best in the groove moments, and don’t forget drummer Lattini’s deft use of the rim on this one. Don’t’ miss “Everything But You” and allow yourself to be transported to a Harlem nightclub back in jazzes hey day.  

“You’ve Changed” is the perfect vehicle for the raconteur Giacomo to speak to his audience, captivate them with his smoky voice, and relate an unspeakable intimacy that almost grabs you by the shoulders through the speakers. Listening to Giacomo is like sitting at a bar with him while he sings to you about his life’s woes. As personal as it gets. Don’t miss the whole band on “I’ve Got News for You” or some of Gates’ best blues on Lucky Thompson’s “You Never Miss the Water ‘Till the Well Runs Dry.”

I have to admit I am a big fan of Giacomo Gates. No other singer on the scene today comes close to him in his milieu. Like a cool breeze on your face as you stroll on a warm sandy beach, Gates singing on You is one of those treasures that epitomizes the simple but finer things in life. The compositions are classic, the delivery is hip, the sensitivity is poignant, or just plain fun. So sit back, put up your feet and enjoy this musical journey.

The Harmonic Sorcery of Jerry Bergonzi's "Spotlight on Standards":

Jerry Bergonzi Spotlight on Standards SCD 2158

The Boston based tenor magician Jerry Bergonzi returns to the organ/tenor/drums format to spin his harmonic sorcery on his latest offering titled Spotlight on Standards. The saxophonist/educator known as the Gonz, while lauded by the insular community of his peers, is not a household name among the general public. He is known for his muscular, hard edged sound, his exquisite fiery technique and his boundless creativity.

Jerry Bergonzi grew up in Boston and started on clarinet at age eight. He credits a musical uncle who used to live upstairs from him with turning him onto jazz early. In youth bands  he learned from  two of the best instructors, John Laporta and Joe Viola and eventually studied  music education at University of Mass in Lowell, MA.  Bergonzi spent several years in New York developing his sound, jamming and shedding with other notable musicians of his era before getting a call from pianist Dave Brubeck. With Brubeck, Bergonzi traveled and played some of the largest and most prestigious festivals and venues in the world. It was a liberating experience and a steady paycheck. The first recording on his discography is from 1973 on Brubeck’s Two Generations of Brubeck. The now sixty-eight-year-old Bergonzi was the saxophonist with Brubeck’s Quartet from 1973-1975 and then again from 1979 to 1982. By the early eighties Bergonzi was back in Boston and began his teaching career, first with private instruction, then publishing books on improvisation and eventually becoming a full time professor at The New England Conservatory of Music where he teaches to this day. Over the years Bergonzi has written upward of one hundred songs and played as a leader or sideman on over thirty records.

On his latest, Spotlight on Standards, Bergonzi is joined by organist Renato Chicco and drummer Andrea Michelutti. This organ trio format is one the saxophonist last used with organist Dan Wall and drummer Adam Nussbaum back in 1999.

From the opening lines of the Cy Coleman classic “Witchcraft” you can hear Bergonzi’s muscular tenor is not about to play this or anything else straight up. It is his resolute willingness to re-harmonize the theme in his own unique way that makes the music so much more than a re-hash of an old standard. This is a re-imagining of the song where the melody is a mere armature upon which to reconstruct something fresh and new. Coupled with his signature saxophone sound the song takes on a new life.

The next four tunes are all Bergonzi originals. His distinctive technique uses creative articulation, a fluidity of thoughts and innovative dynamics to achieve that most precious of commodities- originality. Listen to the elastic logic of his saxophone on his composition “Bi-Polar.”  The notes gush like a wellspring of exploratory thought from a savant’s mind.  On “Blue Cube” he creates a memorable repeating motif. Chicco and Michelutti sustain the easy shuffle over which Bergonzi offers a series of deliberate, sometimes searing lines. He often takes no easily readable path, but nonetheless he lead you to his intended destination. Chicco’s B3 soloing is subtly but equally probing.

“First Lady” is an interesting composition with an uplifting, almost Bossa feel. Bergonzi’s use of the lower register of his instrument never fails to swing. He drifts over the changes with an airy lightness and solid conviction. Michelutti is a master of interjecting timely accents while maintaining a rock-steady rhythm.

Bergonzi’s mournful “Gabriella” is perhaps his most sensitive ballad on this album. The plaintive tenor sound is quite compelling throughout, offering a window into the deepest recesses of the artist’s soul.  It is a wistful cry that cannot be ignored. Chicco’s deft church-like organ brings a pious, religious quality to the whole proceeding. Bergonzi’s command of his instrument, using it as an extension of the human voice,  is extraordinary.

The program returns to the American Songbook with “Dancing in the Dark,” and “Out of Nowhere.” At all times the group displays a solid swing and a masterful ability to create surprising iterations of the melody.  On Johnny Mercer’s “Come Rain or Come Shine” we find Bergonzi’s at his best. His punchy sound articulates with authority as the rhythm section grooves along. He seems to draw from an inexhaustible well of ideas that never seem to repeat and never fail to surprise.

Ned Washington and Victor Young’s venerable standard “Stella by Starlight” is treated with authority and conviction when Bergonzi and company re-imagine this classic. The solid swing, the aggressive declaration of Bergonzi’s saxophone with his  rapid fire lines and Chicco’s unusual B3 musings that seem to directly descend from Larry Young, make this one special. It’s almost an entirely new song. Bergonzi’s solo is overflowing, bursting with ideas, Chicco’s playing is stellar and Michelutti is so subtly correct as to be transcendent.

Here is a link to hear "Witchraft" from Spotlight on Standards

https://soundcloud.com/highnote-savant-records/01-witchcraft-jerry-bergonzi

Graffiti: JD Allen's Art of the Saxophone Jazz Trio

JD Allen's Graffiti Savant SCD 2147

Forty-three year old tenor saxophonist J.D. Allen is a man on the rise. He was named as Downbeat’s Rising Star in 2011 and has matured nicely in the succeeding  four years. Witness his latest creation Graffiti ,  a tour de force of purpose and inventiveness. With this album Mr. Allen has developed a much clearer vision for himself and his sound. Together with the propulsive drums of Rudy Royston and the rooted bass of Greg August, the music sounds like it harkens back to the past while pointing us forward to  the next step in the evolution of the jazz saxophone trio. The album is both a celebration of form and measured free improvisation.

JD Allen (photo credit unknown)

From the opening salvo of Royston’s exploding drums to the clarion voice of Mr. Allen’s tenor on “Naked,” Allen does indeed bare his musical soul. His fluent grasp of the language  makes for an immediately visceral connection with the listener, a free form cry that one can still relate to by virtue of its recognizable form.

“Jawn Henry” is an inspirational tune based on the folktale of John Henry the Steel Driving’ Man.  On this song Mr. August’s plucky  bass provides a low register respite from the dynamic dueling of Mr. Allen and Mr. Royston. The two seem to be musically bent on recreating the man versus machine theme of the folk tale’s legendary duel of strength and they do so effectively.

Allen composed all of the songs on this album and described his intention for each one in the liner notes. On “Third Eye” he writes  “The saxophone and bass play rubato while the drums have the option of playing against type.”  To this end we find Mr. August establishing the heartbeat of the song  . Mr. Royston playing against the tempo, as he so often does, with Mr. Allen left to find his own ground either with the tempo or as a counterpoint to what Mr. Royston is doing. Through it all Mr. Allen returns  to a plaintive call that seems to unify the whole for the listener.

The song “Graffiti,” as the title suggests, is a potpourri of color, rhythm and texture much like the radical, free form of wall art the name implies.  With the short repeated line from Allen’s saxophone as the only basis, Royston pulses, bobs and weaves like a fighter in the ring. August reaches for some grounding  beat for the group to hold onto and Allen explores the color palette, disciplined but carefree. Allen’s tenor has an implied sense of earnestness that is not something that can be contrived.

My favorite piece is the loping “G-dspeed , B, Morris“ perhaps because its melody is memorable and  heartfelt. August is particularly effective in anchoring the tune’s march-like cadence as Mr. Allen plays between the bass lines with an easy swagger that is laid back and mellow.  It is a dedication to the late Butch Morris who originated Conduction, a form of structured free form  improvisation  that allowed the musical conductor to direct an improvising group through the use of his baton and actions. Perhaps this association with Mr. Morris is the guiding light that has allowed Mr. Allen to create this delicate balance between the form and the formless, a  balance he navigates so expertly on this album? 

Butch Morris (photo credit unknown)

The economical “Little Mack” is buoyed by the walking bass line of Mr. August who keeps the pace of this blues right where it should be. Mr. Royston lays back on this one,  punctuating the air here and there with a rim shot or a splash of his cymbal as Mr. Allen  swoons over the melody with succinct clarity. 

On “Sonny Boy”  Mr. August’s bass is again the lead, repeating a motif that allows Mr. Allen to play an ascending and descending line harmonically over the top.   

On the liner notes Mr. Allen says about “Indigo (Blue Like)” Sometimes I feel like the most avant garde thing a jazz musician could do today is to try to straight up and down swing.”  My sentiments exactly. Swing he does with Mr. August and Mr. Royston keeping the tempo as Mr. Allen rides above it, simmering in a slow burn on his saxophone. His sound is uncluttered, heartfelt and swinging

“Disambiguation”  is another take on the aforementioned “Jawn Henry,” a seemingly endless source of  inspiration for Mr. Allen. This time he does so with an openness of form that uses only the barest implication of the original melody to inspire the ensemble improvisation Allen is trying to achieve. Royston and August are free to roam the periphery of the melody finding their own way. This leaves Mr. Allen in the role of foil, responding to the free form dynamic created by his band mates.  Clearly there is trust with this triumvirate of musicians, co creators of this ensemble sound.

With Graffiti Mr. Allen and company have created a body of music  that leaves a lasting impression  and hopefully promises more to come.