Monday, March 03, 2014

1 Sem 2014 - Part Seven

Antonio Faraò American Quartet
Evan  



By Bruce Lindsay
Pianist and composer Antonio Faraò has a wealth of experience in jazz, beginning as a youngster in his native Italy and developing through a career that extends over 30 years. Evan, dedicated to his young son, is Faraò's twelfth album as leader. The seven originals and two covers are credited to Antonio Faraò American Quartet. The band's title reflects the fact that the recording took place in the USA and gives an indication of Faraò's musical compatriots—bassist Ira Coleman, saxophonist Joe Lovano and drummer Jack DeJohnette.
It's Coleman who makes the first emphatic impression, with the tough, rolling, bass riff that underpins "Another Way." Coleman and Dejohnette are a constantly rewarding partnership, their confident rhythms providing an unerringly stylish foundation.
Faraò's contributions are just as stylish as Coleman and Dejohnette's—he seems to relish the freedom afforded by this talented and vastly experienced rhythm pairing. Alongside Coleman and Dejohnette his piano can get a little lost in the mix—although his phrasing and timing make it worth making the effort to listen. As a soloist he's much more up-front, taking control and playing with confidence. Faraò's solo on "Giant Steps" is superb—attacking with a flourish—but his loveliest performance is on "Per Caso." Lovano sits this one out, giving more space to Faraò and Coleman to craft their solos—space they both take full advantage of.
Lovano is probably the best-known of the quartet, but his contributions are less consistent than those of his colleagues. He adds endearingly joyful soprano to "Evan"—matching Judi Silvano's fragile wordless vocal—and similarly engaging tenor to "So Near." However, on the pretty "Roma Nun Fa La Stupida Stasera" and John Coltrane's classic "Giant Steps" he seems uncharacteristically detached. On "Riflessioni" Lovano, Coleman and Silvano seem to meld together into a single, repetitive, sound that forms a disappointing mid-point for the album.
"Tough" finds Lovano back on form—the tenor and piano interplay is terrific. "Two Faces" features another brisk, attacking, solo from Faraò, punchy and assertive bass and drums from Coleman and Dejohnette and Lovano's tight, positive tenor sax. It rounds off Evan on a high, showcasing Faraò's writing talent as well as the American Quartet's command of their instruments. A fitting close for the album.
Track Listing: 
Another Way; Evan; So Near; Per Caso; Riflessioni; Roma Nun Fa La Stupida Stasera; Giant Steps; Tough; Two Faces.
Personnel: 
Antonio Faraò: piano; Joe Lovano: tenor saxophone, soprano saxophone; Ira Coleman: double bass; Jack Dejohnette: drums; Judi Silvano: vocals (2, 5).


Mike Jones Trio
Plays Well With Others



By Jack Bowers
Pianist Mike Jones not only Plays Well with Others, he plays well—period. Using a sharp, two-fisted style that hearkens back to Dave McKenna, Dick Hyman and even Earl Hines, undergirded by a buoyant melodicism worthy of Barry Harris, Tommy Flanagan or his namesake Hank Jones, it's clear there's not much that Jones can't accomplish musically with keyboard in hand. And when the "others" he is playing with are bassist Mike Gurrola and drummer Jeff Hamilton, so much the better.
Gurrola represents a step up from Jones' "regular" bassist, the magician Penn Jillette, with whom "Jonesy" (Jillette's pet name for him) has been sharing the stage for more than a decade as the opening act preceding Penn and Teller's popular Las Vegas comedy / magic show. Jillette "found" Jones playing at a Las Vegas nightspot and let him know he could open for Penn and Teller with one proviso, that the neophyte Jillette would be his bassist. Given that choice, what could Jones do? He and Jillette have been performing together ever since.
Happily (for the listener), Jillette generously stepped aside for this recording date to make room for Gurrola. Add the perceptive and resourceful Hamilton and you have a piano trio that can stand its ground against any other. While Jones sets the tone with his bright and engaging melodic lines and clever ad libs, Gurrola and Hamilton provide the rhythmic muscle and unwavering support that keep the motor humming and the bus moving forward. And even though Jones has technique to burn, he is thoroughly at ease with a ballad, as he shows on "September Song," "I Know Why," "I Thought About You" and "Detour Ahead" (the last sans Gurrola and Hamilton). The session harbors a pair of charming blues ("Box Viewing Blues," "Obscuro Blues"), both written by Jones, to chaperon the tunes already named plus the standards "Besame Mucho," "It's a Wonderful World," "Day by Day," "Deed I Do" and "I'm Old Fashioned," Consuelo Velazquez' "Besame Mucho," Antonio Carlos Jobim's "Corcovado" and Fats Domino's "I'm Walkin.'"
"Magicians' hands aren't quicker than the eye," Penn Jillette writes, "but Jonesey's fingers might be." While quickness is assuredly a virtue, so is the ability to produce beautiful music at any tempo. Jones, Gurrola and Hamilton are aces-high in both areas, traits that help make Plays Well with Others a superlative piano trio recording.
Track Listing: 
Besame Mucho; It’s a Wonderful World; September Song; I Know Why (And So Do You); Box Viewing Blues; Detour Ahead; Day by Day; Corcovado; I’m Walkin’; Deed I Do; I’m Old Fashioned; I Thought About You; Obscuro Blues.
Personnel: 
Mike Jones: piano; Mike Gurrola: bass; Jeff Hamilton: drums.


Neil Cowley Trio
The Face Of Mount Molehill



By Dave Sumner
The danger of composing tunes with catchy hooks and enthusiastic infusions of a string ensemble for a jazz album is that it gets dismissed as gussied up pop music; not jazz, just jazzy. Either unaware or unconcerned with the risk, pianist Neil Cowley presents a series of warm tunes that wear their heart on their sleeve. It's not the first time that unguarded sincerity overcame risk and danger.
Cowley comes from a background more rooted in the rock, soul and funk of the UK scene, and that influence is evident from the first note. Here's an album with stylized grooves, fuzzy harmonies and rich melodies, and which could stunt double as a Badly Drawn Boy soundtrack. And, yet, Cowley finds a way to tether it to jazz. The trio is rounded out with Rex Horan on double bass and Evan Jenkins on drums.
The first track, "Lament," opens with an introspective countryside walk on piano, odd percussion like sounds off in the distant city, and strings like sunlight streaking across the path. It's a tune thick with imagery, and it's a theme that repeats throughout.
The second track, "Rooster Was A Witness," provides an immediate contrast, with anthemic piano riffs and up-tempo rhythms that have at least one foot in rock territory. Strings make an appearance with a swirl and gust of harmony, adding buoyancy to an already lively tune.
This leads into "Fable," which knocks up the pulse count even higher. There's a nice push and pull with the rhythm on this song, and it has the strange result of providing more of a cerebral engagement and much less foot-tapping than would be expected at first blush.
Here's where Cowley brings the sledgehammer down upon the heart-strings. During the next several tracks, he unabashedly sends the string ensemble out to lead the charge, the piano trio following behind, and sometimes by more than a few steps; piano and bass frequently sound distant, an effect that's likely not unintentional. It's also quite powerful. And when he adds the eerie vocal effects of "Mini Ha Ha," the strangeness only serves to enhance the beauty of the song.
On "Slims," Cowley returns with some piano bounce. Jenkins' drumwork provides a sharp edge to the song, while Horan's bass navigates the trail between.
"Distance By Clockwork" is the best candidate for purest distillation of the soul of this album. Cowley has constructed a song within a song. Cyclical piano lines that seem to lead to new solos and new circumferences, perpetually bisected by hopscotch drum rhythms, while bass eddies and curls at the edges. And, of course, sweeping waves of string ensemble, sometimes providing an undercurrent of harmony, sometimes dramatically washing over everything in sight. It's a composition that could have easily failed and been canned as melodramatic were it not for the fact that Cowley pulls it off.
The title track is the only weak link on the album. It repeats some of the motifs of earlier anthem-rock tracks, but with a bit too much exuberance, making it sound like it had been hurriedly assembled.
The album ends with a trio of compositions that come off as an extended goodbye. They are suffused with an undeniable finality, but just as the album had multiple thematic devices, it appears that Cowley wished to send listeners off with an au revoir in each of those sounds. It's not a bad thing or a bad idea, but the album may have been stronger with a more definitive, and prompt, final note.
There are going to be those who aren't thrilled with the direction Cowley has taken with The Face of Mount Molehill, claiming it to be less experimental, less daring. They'd be wrong. When measured in terms of sincerity, honest displays of emotion carry a lot of weight, and that kind of impact shouldn't be dismissed. This is an album that deserves to be respected for what it is and not what others wish it to have been.
Tracks: 
Lament; Rooster Was A Witness; Fable; Meyer; Skies Are Rare; Mini Ha Ha; Slims; Distance By Clockwork; The Face Of Mount Molehill; Hope Machine; La Porte; Sirens Last Look Back.
Personnel: 
Neil Cowley: piano; Rex Horan: double bass; Evan Jenkins: drums.


Mark Masters Ensemble
Everything You Did: The Music Of Walter Becker & Donald Fagen



By Jack Bowers
Another tribute album from leader / arranger Mark Masters whose splendid ensemble has previously paid homage to trumpeter Clifford Brown, saxophonist Lee Konitz, trombonist Jimmy Knepper and the Gershwin brothers (Porgy & Bess Redefined). This time around it's the music of Walter Becker and Donald Fagen, better known by their collective name, Steely Dan. The album, says Masters, is "a quartet recording with an ensemble," and said foursome is comprised of trumpeterTim Hagans, tenor saxophonist Billy Harper, bassist Hamilton Price and drummer Peter Erskine. The ensemble, he writes, "is there to create colors for the soloists to respond to . . .," which it does efficiently on every number.
While opinions may vary about the music of Steely Dan, there's no doubt where Masters stands; he's squarely in their corner, and the arrangements, he notes, are designed to "free [their] music from the earthly confines, in some cases, of harmonic structure and allow the quartet . . . to create the magic that great improvisers birth." In doing so, he makes use of such varied instruments as the vibraphone, French horn, bass clarinet, bassoon, English horn and alto flute to lend the music an ethereal and exotic veneer, adding to the mix the sympathetic voice of Anna Mjoll on "Charlie Freak" and "Black Cow." Harper fashions a consentient solo on "Freak," and bass clarinetist Brian Williams does likewise on "Cow."
Elsewhere, Becker and Fagen's compositions, while arguably less than memorable on their own, serve as reliable points of departure for the ensemble and soloists. Nowhere is this more evident than on the tranquil ballad "Fire in the Hole," whose enticing alto solo by Gary Foster is among the album's highlights. "Fire" is followed by the light-hearted "Kings," on which the quartet takes no prisoners, the relatively well-known "AJA" (from Steely Dan's album of that name) and blues-based shuffle "Chain Lightning," enhanced by Don Shelton's alto sax and earnest solos by Price, trombonist Ryan Dragon, alto Oliver Lake and baritone Gary Smulyan (who offers another strong statement on "Do It Again," which also showcases Gene Cipriano and Sonny Simmons on English horn and bassoonist John Mitchell).
Whatever the theme, Masters and the ensemble always deliver the goods, and the music of Steely Dan has probably never sounded better than it does here.
Track Listing: 
Show Biz Kids; Bodhisattva; Do It Again; Charlie Freak; Black Cow; Josie; Fire in the Hole; Kings; AJA; Chain Lightning.
Personnel: 
Mark Masters: leader, arranger; Louis Fasman: trumpet; Les Lovitt: trumpet; Don Shelton: alto, soprano sax, alto flute; Gary Foster: alto sax (7); Oliver Lake: alto sax (10); John Mitchell: tenor sax, bassoon; Gene Cipriano: tenor sax, English horn; Gary Smulyan: baritone sax; Stephanie O’Keefe: French horn; Sonny Simmons: English horn (3); Les Benedict: trombone; Dave Ryan: trombone; Ryan Dragon: trombone; Dave Woodley: trombone (9); Brian Williams: bass clarinet; Brad Dutz: vibes, percussion. Special guests — Tim Hagans: trumpet; Billy Harper: tenor sax; Hamilton Price: bass; Peter Erskine: drums; Anna Mjoll: voice.


Aaron Parks
Arborescence



By John Kelman
Slowly but surely, over the past several years, ECM Records has forged relationships with some of New York City's most impressive musicians—no mean feat given that, despite the Big Apple no longer being the jazz mecca it once was, it certainly remains a lightning rod for some of the world's most creative musicians, ranging from trumpeter Ralph Alessi and saxophonistsTim Berne and Chris Potter, to pianists David Virelles,Jason Moran and Craig Taborn—all of whom have been represented, either as guests or leaders, on some of the most uncompromising and impressive music to be released in recent times—not just on the heralded German label, but anywhere, period.
Add to that list pianist Aaron Parks—who, like Taborn's superb first recording as a leader for the label (2011's Avenging Angels), makes his own ECM debut by contributing another fine installment to a label that has, across four decades beginning with Chick Corea's Piano Improvisations Vol. 1 (1971) and Keith Jarrett's Facing You (1972), defined the litmus test against which all subsequent solo piano recordings are measured.
Parks is a rarity: a young musician who, at a time when such things are difficult if not impossible, spent his first few professional years mentored by an older musician, in this caseTerence Blanchard. The trumpeter met Parks when the pianist was 15, recruiting him three years later and giving him an opportunity to see how it was done both on the road and in the studio, so that when Parks stepped out on his own with the acclaimed Invisible Cinema (Blue Note, 2008), he was well and truly ready.
In the ensuing years, Parks has become increasingly in demand, including membership with the egalitarian James Farm, the promise of its 2011 eponymous Nonesuch debut confidently delivered with more recent live performances, and with Kurt Rosenwinkel, whose Star of Jupiter (Wommusic, 2012) represented yet another career milestone for the upwardly mobile guitarist.
None of which prepare for Arborescence, a suite of eleven largely spontaneous creations that reflect a great many touchstones while, at the same time, speaking with a voice that has fully matured, now plainly assertive of its own personality. The opening "Asleep in the Forest" and darkly pastoral "Elsewhere" feel somehow a kinship to French composer Erik Satie, were he to have hailed from the forests of the Northwestern United States (where Parks grew up) instead of the southern estuary of the Seine River in Northwestern France. Minimalistic hints imbue the repetitive motif-driven "In Pursuit," where Parks' virtuosity—never an end, just a means—is more dominant, while the skewed and, at times, abstruse lyricism of "Branchings" and "Past Presence" hint at Paul Bley's innovations in the realm of spontaneously composition, despite Parks' independent voice a constant delineator throughout this 50-minute set.
With Parks turning 30 a week prior to Arborescence's October 15 release, the pianist's milestones continue to accelerate. His past work may have been consistently impressive, butArborescence represents the true watershed of Parks' arrival as an artist whose future shines brighter with every passing year.
Track Listing: 
Asleep in the Forest; Toward Awakening; Past Presence; Elsewhere; In Pursuit; Squirrels; Branching; River Ways; A Curious Bloom; Reverie; Homestead.
Personnel: 
Aaron Parks: piano.


Mozdzer³ Danielsson² Fresco¹
Polska



By ActMusic
"Polska" would not sound the way it does, if it had not been born in a trio with the Swedish bassist Lars Danielsson and the Israeli percussionist and singer Zohar Fresco. Możdżer found these soul mates ten years ago: the two already showed themselves to be a dream team of intuitive ensemble playing on the Danielsson albums "Pasodoble" (as a duo) and "Tarantella". And Danielsson is not only one of the best jazz bassists (and cellists!) in the world, he also has similar compositional preferences to Możdżer, which can be heard here on his tracks "Africa" and the touching "Spirit". As a member of "Bustan Abraham", "Ziryab" and "Noah", Fresco is one of the Israeli pioneers who began in the eighties joining music from the west with music from the east, Arabian with European. Unperceived here, these three have already recorded two albums in Poland that went double platinum (just like the recent "Komeda")!
Now, no matter where you are, with "Polska" you can discover one of the most fascinating and extraordinary trios in the world with Leszek Możdżer as its creative mastermind. One that sweeps you away with the pulsating "KarMa Party" or simply enchants with the balladesque "Norgon", and one that with the aid of the Polish Symphony Orchestra knows how to provide a grand finale, with a version of Jimi Hendrix' "Are You Experienced?".
Personnel:
Leszek Możdżer / piano, celesta, vibraphone, synth
Lars Danielsson / cello, bass
Zohar Fresco / percussion, vocal
Track Listing:
Chai Peimot, She Said She Was A Painter, Weeks/ Shavuot, Yearning For A Nest
Polska, Africa, KarMa Party, Norgon, Gsharim, Spirit, Are you Experienced?
Recording Information:
Produced by Możdżer - Danielsson - Fresco
Recorded at Alvernia Studios, mixed and mastered: Tadeusz Mieczkowski
Additional sound engineering: Piotr Witkowski, Piotr Taraszkiewicz
Technical Supervisors: Roman Oses, Krzysztof Bielewicz . Studio executive: Daria Druzgała
Orchestra recorded at Recordings Studios of Polish Radio – S1
Synth and celesta recorded at Studio 701 Wrocław.

Sunday, March 02, 2014

1 Sem 2014 - Part Six

Ramberto Ciammarughi
New Music For Trio



By  Francesco Peluso Fedeltà del Suono - La Bacchetta Magica
Il pianista di origine umbra Ramberto Ciammarughi offre, in questo primo lavoro a proprio nome per la romana CAM JAZZ, un viaggio compositivo ed espressivo dalle tenui, sfumate ed eleganti coloriture musicali, registrato dal vivo nella sua terra natale nel 2006 presso il “Teatro dei Riuniti” di Umbertide (PG). In compagnia di due icone del jazz internazionale del calibro di Miroslav Vitous al contrabbasso e Gerald Cleaver alla batteria, Ramberto Ciammarughi mostra la propria cifra stilistica in un susseguirsi di performances in trio che alternano momenti di pura estasi riflessiva ad altri d’intensa esuberanza formale. In apertura, subito un sognante omaggio al vasto mondo degli standard con la evergreen “Bye Bye Blackbird” di Ray Henderson e pietra miliare di “Miles”, incalzata dall’irrefrenabile flusso ritmico di “Anabasys” a firma del band leader, in cui il binomio fra il corposo groove del contrabbasso e il dinamico esternarsi del pianoforte la fanno da padrone. Poi, “New Music For Trio” si dipana fra le malinconiche accezioni di “Johannes B” e “Come sempre”, che lasciano il passo alle tensioni ritmico-espressive di “B-Loose” e “In D”, in un imprevedibile e ammiccante saliscendi di atmosfere che, vedi l’intrigante “Impro Trio” di Vitous e la conclusiva “W On W” di Ciammarughi, mettono in gran spolvero il gusto estetico del bravo pianista di Assisi e il perfetto interplay raggiunto con i suoi talentuosi partner. Pertanto, la “nuova musica per trio” di Ramberto Ciammarughi rappresenta una poetica narrazione della sua personalità artistica, che regala circa cinquanta minuti di musica in cui è racchiusa una condivisa visione di jazz e laddove il navigato e granitico incedere del contrabbasso di Miroslav Vitous, il frenetico drummin’ di Gerald Cleaver e il sicuro pianismo di Ramberto Ciammarughi spaziano dalla musica dotta al modern mainstream, senza inciampare mai in alcun passaggio a vuoto o produrre soluzioni melodico-armoniche di maniera.
La ripresa audio di questo lavoro, mixata da Miroslav Vitous presso l’Universal Syncopations Studios di Mondovì, mostra un’ottima riproduzione timbrica e una strabiliante ricostruzione dell’originale spazialità live.

By CamJazz
For the first time on CAM JAZZ, Ramberto Ciammarughi, a pianist from Assisi, makes his debut on the Roman label with his "new music for a trio". A top-class trio, with the well-known Miroslav Vitous on double bass and Gerald Cleaver on drums. These two musicians are in perfect harmony with the leader, thanks also to the numerous collaborations during the course of their training.
Ciammarughi wrote almost all of the tracks. He leaves Vitous the honor and task of starting up an excellent “ImproTrio”, which follows an outstanding version of Miles Davis’ “Bye Bye Blackbird” (opening the album), which represent the only exceptions in a musical discourse where the pianist’s style is always easily recognized, rich in touch and in the articulation of the musical architecture. In the overwhelming, intense piece “Anabasys”, we hear Ciammarughi and Vitous out in front, sustaining an obsessive, burning rhythm. The calmness of “
Come Sempre”, some passages of which are almost movie-like, contrasts like chiaroscuro with “B-Loose”, an excellent example, and extremely energetic, of the feeling created by the leader with his valuable travel companions.
This journey confirms Ciammarughi as one of the most polished, original, curious interpreters of his instrument. The musician, who has accustomed us to phases of creativity alternating with moments of silence and thought, is captured here, live, in 2006, recorded during some gigs at the “Teatro dei Riuniti” in Umbertide, not far from his native city of Assisi, and mixed by Miroslav Vitous in Mondovì, at Universal Syncopations Studios.
“New Music for Trio” is a CD to be listened to without a break, like those concerts, in which Ciammarughi asks the audience not to applaud between pieces, so as to keep each listener constantly poised on the edge of emotion.
Recorded live at Teatro dei Riuniti - Umbertide
Live recording engineer Marco Cocchieri


Ralph Alessi & Fred Hersch
Only Many



By George Kanzler at The New York City Jazz Record
Trumpeter Ralph Alessi and pianist Fred Hersch are not strangers, having worked together in Hersch’s quintet. That they are familiar and compatible with each other is evident in the rapport achieved on this duo album, made up largely of originals and improvised collaborations. The 14 tracks here range from pointillist abstractions like “Ride”, a fast, jabbing creation, and “Peering”, a slower, more deliberate meditation, to more lyrical, melodic pieces like the gravely solemn “Campbell” and Paul Motian’s sensuous “Blue Midnight”. Thelonious Monk’s “San Francisco Holiday” is puckishly animated by Harmonmuted trumpet and Hersch referencing Monk pianisms as well as the composer’s fondness for repeating his theme in solos and comping.
Alessi commands an arsenal of trumpet techniques, equally at home playing darting, crisp runs and smeared, smudged notes as long, mellifluous tones and sumptuous lines like those on his own hymnlike “Humdrum” or the ringing, clarion “Hands”. Aside from the seven largely improvised collaborations, the trumpeter provides four compositions. Hersch’s only work is the gleaming “Calder”, a piece with bright, spiraling lines and geometric intersections between the two instruments that recall the namesake’s mobiles. At times, Hersch’s piano is spare, almost skeletal, interacting with Alessi as well as with himself, his two hands utterly distinct. There’s a fountain-like tinkling on the collaboration “Floating Head Syndrome”, Hersch in a high range contrasting with Alessi’s lower, breathy tone. Yet his playing is romantically fullbodied on Alessi’s “1st Dog”, one of the few originals with a catchy tune, reinforced by snappy trumpet phrases.
But the often cerebral and compelling force of this collaboration rests on the interaction and interplay between the two, especially as evinced in the longest track: “Someone Digging in the Ground”, a tour de force of both musical technique and dual invention sustained for over ten glorious minutes.

By CamJazz
The second work by Ralph Alessi on CAM Jazz, after the successful debut of “Cognitive Dissonance”. This time the trumpet player shares the honor of appearing on the cover with Fred Hersch, a pianist of great class, who is in perfect accord with his partner in adventure. “Only Many” is prevalently a CD for four hands, proof of the great complicity created in the studio at the time of the recording.
The brief, intense introduction, “Ride”, seems to be almost a warning to the listener, a call to concentrate on what will happen during the 60 minutes of the album. The velvety “Hands”, composed by Alessi alone, is the prelude to one of the two “cover” pieces on the CD, the wonderful “San Francisco Holiday” by a Thelonious Monk, who can never be mentioned and reinterpreted enough. We have to wait until almost the end of “Only Many” to hear the other virtual guest, Paul Motian, with “Blue Midnight”.
Hypnotic, expanded themes, from Monk to Motian, in which improvisation and interplay reign supreme. Hersch and Alessi pursue each other, chase each other, overlap each other and slowly find increasingly different languages and expressive forms, resulting in an utterly fascinating, magnetic CD. Short, essential themes, almost always lasting between two and four minutes, except for the two interpretations of other composers and the long suite, “Someone Digging in the Ground”, which is the prelude to “Snap”, the grand finale.
A new, interesting development of the artistic dialogue between the pianist and the trumpet player that began a few years ago in Pocket Orchestra by Hersch and destined to further, surprising developments.
Recorded at Dolan Recording Studios/NYU Steinhardt School
Recording engineer Paul Geluso


Kit Downes
Light From Old Stars



By Bruce Lindsay
Given pianist/composer Kit Downes' standing in the UK jazz scene it's rather surprising that Light From Old Stars is only the third album he's released under his own name. It's less surprising when his relative youth—he was still in his mid-20s when he recorded this album—and active membership in bands such as Troyka and Stan Sulzmann's Neon are added to the mix. All this musical activity might seem to leave little time for other considerations, but at least one non-musical interest is key to the development of Light From Old Stars.
As the album's title suggests, the key is Downes' fascination with science generally and astronomy in particular. The cover design, by Lesley Barnes, takes this astronomical inspiration and adds a touch of mysticism. The sleeve notes, by NASA astrobiologist Danielle Scalice, take a more scientific perspective yet still serve to emphasize the mystery of the stars. "Wander And Colossus" reflects this mystery and fascination most clearly, driven by Downes and drummerJames Maddren's rolling, seemingly eternal, rhythm.
Not all of the old stars which inspire Downes are distant entities. He readily acknowledges the influence of pianists Paul Bley and Jan Johansson and both get tunes in their honor—Downes is particularly impressive on the jagged and darting "Bleydays." Downes also admires legendary blues musicians like Robert Johnson, Muddy Waters and Skip James—whose impact Downes acknowledged with "Skip James" on his second album, Quiet Tiger (Basho Records, 2011). Their influence is also at the heart of Light From Old Stars, especially on "Outlawed," a loose-limbed tune redolent of laidback country blues which features Calum Gourlay's rootsy bass solo.
Two tunes with ornithological titles inject some engaging eccentricity into the mix. "Owls" findsJames Allsopp's bass clarinet twitting and twooing on the cheerfully upbeat opening and closing passages, while Lucy Railton's scary cello creates a much darker mood in the middle section. "The Mad Wren"—which may or may not refer to this album's drummer—jumps and bounces just like the tiny bird as it switches between moods and tempos.
The old stars of the cosmos and the old stars of the blues may seem to have little in common—but both of them have inspired the creation of a lovely, rewarding, album. Light From Old Stars is Downes' most accessible and imaginative album to date, a worthy addition to an already impressive body of work.
Track Listing: 
Wander And Colossus; Bleydays; Outlawed; What's The Rumpus; Two Ones; Falling Dancing; Owls; The Mad Wren; Jan Johansson.
Personnel: 
Kit Downes: piano, organ (3, 5, 8); James Allsopp: tenor saxophone, clarinet, bass clarinet); Lucy Railton: cello; Calum Gourlay: bass; James Maddren: drums.


John Abercrombie Quartet
39 Steps



By John Kelman
John Abercrombie has rarely played with pianists, at least in his own groups and throughout his extensive discography as a leader for ECM Records that began with the immediate classic, 1975'sTimeless. Other than a brief reunion with that record's group for 1984's Night, the veteran guitarist has, in fact, only recorded with one other piano-based group, the quartet responsible for Arcade(1979), Abercrombie Quartet (1980) and M (1981)—all featuring another intrepid improviser, Richie Beirach, and slated for released in 2014 as an Old & New Masters Edition box that will finally see all three in print on CD (two for the first time). Meanwhile, 39 Steps is, then, Abercrombie's first recording as a leader with a pianist since Night, though it's far from a first encounter.
39 Steps may be pianist Marc Copland's long overdue ECM debut—a post-Bill Evans pianist whose attention to touch and space have long made him a worthy candidate for the label's pristine sonic approach—but this group, with the exception of drummer Joey Baron, who replaces original drummer Billy Hart, has been working together, on occasion, since Second Look (Savoy Jazz, 1996), reuniting in 2007 for Another Place (Pirouet, 2008). But if both dates featured Copland as ostensible leader, they were all rather egalitarian when it came to compositional contributions, split fairly evenly between the pianist and Abercrombie.
39 Steps represents a couple of significant differences, beyond Baron's recruitment. First, the lion's share of the compositions belong to Abercrombie, who rightfully assumes leader credit here, with Copland contributing only two of the set's ten pieces, along with one group-credited free improv and an indirect closing nod to tradition with a reading of "Melancholy Baby" that still fits within the quartet's overall sphere of approach; freely interpreted, in this case with no time and no discernible changes, its melody remains recognizable amidst the freewheeling yet carefully controlled freedom and interaction within which this group operates.
The other important change is, for the first time, having an external producer—in this case, ECM label head Manfred Eicher. As good as Copland's two previous recordings sound, there's a notable and tremendous difference in how this date sounds: more delicate, more rarefied, with every note discernible right down to its final decay and even the most delicate touch of a cymbal occupying its rightful place in the overall soundscape. From the first notes of Abercrombie's opening "Vertigo," with Copland's repeated single-note motif supported by both his left hand and Abercrombie's careful voicing—one of the guitarist's strengths always being his intrinsic ability to work with other chordal instruments without either ever getting in the way of them—it's clear just how transparent everything is, allowing the music to breathe in ways that previous collaborations with Abercrombie, Copland and Gress have not.
Copland's delicate touch—at times, seeming to barely brush the keys, as on Abercrombie's balladic "As It Stands"—is definitive, as is the relentlessly reliable support coming from Gress and Baron, whether swinging elegantly on the pianist's brighter, appealingly lyrical "LST" or the guitarist's slower-tempo'd "Bacharach," the pair shifting feels so seamlessly as to be almost unnoticeable ... almost.
The interaction, in particular between Abercrombie and Copland, is as deep as decades playing together would suggest, and if this program of largely new composition feels both fresh and familiar to fans of both players, there's one tune that is particularly so: "Another Ralph's," an update—or, perhaps, sequel—to Abercrombie's "Ralph's Piano Waltz," originally written for guitarist/pianist and duo mate Ralph Towner, first heard on Timeless but which has become, along with that album's title tracks, one of Abercrombie's most often-played tunes, having been recorded by everyone from Towner himself on Solo Concert (ECM, 1980) to Abercrombie, who revisited the tune on Current Events (1986), with his then-trio of Marc Johnson and Peter Erskine.
Eicher often encourages artists to engage in free improvisation at his sessions, and while neither Abercrombie nor Copland are strangers to such unfettered contexts, "Shadow of a Doubt" is the first recorded instance of the two engaging in such completely unplanned spontaneity. Between Gress' soft arco, Copland's harp-like, sustain pedal-driven sweeps and Baron's textural cymbal work, it slowly coalesces into form as Abercrombie joins in with volume pedal-swelled lines, angular in nature but somehow soft and rounded in timbre, even as the quartet gradually turns to more oblique territory as the three-minute improvisation nears its end.
As good as their previous recordings together have been, 39 Steps represents a major leap forward for Abercrombie and Copland's relationship, even as the guitarist returns to the piano-based configuration that was his first touring context, back in the late '70s. With Copland a welcome addition to the ECM roster and Eicher paying so much attention to music coming out of the New York City area these last couple of years—notable (and diverse) examples beingTim Berne's Shadow Man, Craig Taborn's Chants and Chris Potter's The Sirens, all 2013 releases—here's hoping that this quartet will continue, and that Copland will ultimately be afforded the opportunity to record more for the label...perhaps, even, a solo piano session, whose potential would be most intriguing with Eicher in the producer's chair, and with the lucent sonics of the label that Abercrombie has called home for nearly forty years.
Track Listing: 
Vertigo; LST; Bacharach; Greenstreet; As It Stands; Spellbound; Another Ralph's; Shadow of a Doubt; 39 Steps; Melancholy Baby.
Personnel: 
John Abercrombie: guitar; Marc Copland: piano; Drew Gress: double bass; Joey Baron: drums.


Graham Dechter
Takin´ It There



By Dan Bilawsky 
A quartet is usually a self-contained collection of four, but sometimes these groupings serve as part of a greater whole; guitarist Graham Dechter's foursome does both. Dechter, drummer Jeff Hamilton, bassist John Clayton and pianistTamir Hendelman serve as the rhythmic power source for theClayton-Hamilton Jazz Orchestra but they can also stand on their own in fine, grooving fashion.
Dechter, in his mid-twenties at the time of this recording, has been keeping company with Clayton and Hamilton since he joined the rhythm section of their illustrious orchestra when he was only nineteen. He played the hell out the guitar back then and he's continued to mature at a rapid pace ever since. Right On Time (Capri, 2009) gave him an opportunity to spread his wings and fly as a leader for the first time, fronting the very same rhythm unit that gave him his first big break, and Takin' It There is round two from this team.
These guys have all made their individual and collective reputations on the fact that they keep better time than a Rolex, so this fact isn't really worth an at-length discussion. The leader's style, direction and vision, however, deserve comment. Dechter may be operating in the present, but it doesn't seem to be his favorite time. The young guitarist is a '50s and '60s jazz devotee and it comes through in every way. His song choices, which reference guitar greats likeWes Montgomery ("Road Song") and Barney Kessel ("Be Deedle Dee Do"), bossa nova kingpin Antonio Carlos Jobim ("Chega De Saudade") and trumpeter Lee Morgan ("Hocus Pocus") are the first indication. His playing, which is rooted in the Montgomery, Kessel andHerb Ellis schools, is the second signpost. Smoking single note lines, blues-based rejoinders and clean-toned melodies, which nod to those three guitar greats at different times, sing forth from Dechter's axe.
Familiar material is around every corner on this disc, but that doesn't mean it's run of the mill in execution. "Chega De Saudade" carries a certain degree of intensity in its being that's rarely encountered in other takes on this classic and "Come Rain Or Come Shine" is given a winning makeover. When Dechter and company put the classics aside, they prove equally capable of creating down-home feels and/or musical finery. "Together & Apart" is a mellow original from the leader which opens on some beautiful, cello-like arco work from Clayton, Josh Nelson's title track takes a little while to catch fire, but Dechter and Hendelman eventually fan the flames with some fine soloing, and Clayton's "Grease For Graham," powered by Hamilton's shuffling stick work, is a gas.
While some of the positive feedback for this recording will likely be focused on the established veterans, Dechter deserves his due. He may have the luxury of playing with the cream of the crop, but they don't carry him. Graham Dechter's playing is capable, confident and charismatic in every way.
Track Listing: 
Road Song; Be Deedle Dee Do; Chega De Saudade (No More Blues); Together & Apart; Takin' It There; Father; Grease For Graham; Hocus Pocus; Come Rain Or Come Shine; Amanda/Everytime We Say Goodbye.
Personnel: 
Graham Dechter: guitar; Tamir Hendelman: piano; John Clayton: bass; Jeff Hamilton: drums.