Speak : Live at Cory Weeds' Cellar Jazz Club
By Pierre Giroux at audaud.com
In the liner notes to this Mike Ledonne Trio Cellar Live release entitled Speak, highly regarded pianist Bill Charlap offers the following assessment of the performer: “Mike Ledonne is one of my favorite pianists. An artist of great integrity and depth, he’s incapable of playing a dishonest note”. High praise indeed, but a listen to this album confirms this appraisal.
The first five tracks of this recording are all tied together as part of “Suite Mary” a story told in music and dedicated to Ledonne’s daughter Mary, who has a very rare disability called Prader Willi syndrome. All of Ledonne’s musical sensibilities are on display in the various sections where he brings each one to life. Demonstrating showy form, assured attack, and interesting turn of expression, Ledonne delivers a scintillating palette of music.
Pianist/composer James Williams wrote “What Do You Say Dr. J” for basketball legend Julius Irving and it is given a groovy downhome reading by the trio with drummer Farnsworth delivering a confident rhythmic signature and bassist Webber in full grasp of his instrument. “I Loves You, Porgy” opens with Ledonne stating the theme in soft Latin frame then picking up the pace to 4/4 time on the bridge. All in all an unusual rendition of the composition. A breakneck speed rendition of Ledonne’s composition “Blues For McCoy” which is dedicated to McCoy Tyner shows the pianist’s capability of owning the keyboard with an especially boisterous drum solo from Farnsworth. The set closes with Cedar Walton’s composition “Bleeker Street Theme”. Walton died on August 19, 2013 and was acknowledged as one of jazz’s most esteemed composers with a book of compositions that covered a panoply of styles. Ledonne’s take on the tune runs the gamut of Waltonian touches that give each piece its identity. Throughout this album, Ledonne demonstrates his profuse technique coupled with storytelling insight.
TrackList:
By Pierre Giroux at audaud.com
In the liner notes to this Mike Ledonne Trio Cellar Live release entitled Speak, highly regarded pianist Bill Charlap offers the following assessment of the performer: “Mike Ledonne is one of my favorite pianists. An artist of great integrity and depth, he’s incapable of playing a dishonest note”. High praise indeed, but a listen to this album confirms this appraisal.
The first five tracks of this recording are all tied together as part of “Suite Mary” a story told in music and dedicated to Ledonne’s daughter Mary, who has a very rare disability called Prader Willi syndrome. All of Ledonne’s musical sensibilities are on display in the various sections where he brings each one to life. Demonstrating showy form, assured attack, and interesting turn of expression, Ledonne delivers a scintillating palette of music.
Pianist/composer James Williams wrote “What Do You Say Dr. J” for basketball legend Julius Irving and it is given a groovy downhome reading by the trio with drummer Farnsworth delivering a confident rhythmic signature and bassist Webber in full grasp of his instrument. “I Loves You, Porgy” opens with Ledonne stating the theme in soft Latin frame then picking up the pace to 4/4 time on the bridge. All in all an unusual rendition of the composition. A breakneck speed rendition of Ledonne’s composition “Blues For McCoy” which is dedicated to McCoy Tyner shows the pianist’s capability of owning the keyboard with an especially boisterous drum solo from Farnsworth. The set closes with Cedar Walton’s composition “Bleeker Street Theme”. Walton died on August 19, 2013 and was acknowledged as one of jazz’s most esteemed composers with a book of compositions that covered a panoply of styles. Ledonne’s take on the tune runs the gamut of Waltonian touches that give each piece its identity. Throughout this album, Ledonne demonstrates his profuse technique coupled with storytelling insight.
TrackList:
Suite Mary Part 1: Speak; Suite Mary Part 11: Listen; Suite Mary Suite 111: Play; Suite Mary Part IV: I Will Always Love You; Suite Mary Part V: Little M; What You Say Dr.J; I Loves You, Porgy; Blues For McCoy; Bleeker Street Theme
Mike Ledonne – piano; John Webber – upright bass; Joe Farnsworth – drums
Eri Yamamoto Trio
Mike Ledonne – piano; John Webber – upright bass; Joe Farnsworth – drums
Eri Yamamoto Trio
Firefly
By Britt Robson at JazzTimes
On the surface, Japanese pianist Eri Yamamoto may be the most conventional artist on the intrepid AUM Fidelity label. Yet there are virtues in Yamamoto’s music that are rarely heard elsewhere. One is the depth of her rapport with a rhythm section that has gigged with her regularly for over 13 years, making whole a steady stream of new compositions from her prolific muse. Another is Yamamoto’s ability to evoke ephemeral feelings and concepts with such precise intonation. On this new album’s opener, “Memory Dance,” she commemorates deceased friends with lyrical riffs of increasing intensity, altering their emphasis and tempo ever so slightly without milking the resonance—and trusting bassist David Ambrose and drummer Ikuo Takeuchi will provide the shading while honoring her subtlety.
That longstanding but still delicate balance is altered a bit on Firefly, however. It is the Yamamoto Trio’s first live recording, a setting that almost inevitably generates fervor, and Ambrose and Takeuchi are more prominent and forceful in the mix on these eight new originals. It enhances the caliber of their solos and exchanges with Yamamoto on the evocative title track and the sweet gambol of “Playground.” But it’s preferable when Yamamoto is more obviously first among equals, because she is best equipped to add gravitas and emotional heft to the lyricism of her songs. (Or maybe I just cherish the trio’s studio status quo.)
Firefly closes with “Real Story,” probably the most expressive blues Yamamoto has written in years, although it remains a slinky, midtempo affair. Here is the vehicle for more loose-limbed phrases, but Yamamoto, like her mentor, Tommy Flanagan, sounds august even when she’s being impish, and even as the emotions are so effectively seeping through.
Gregory Porter
By Britt Robson at JazzTimes
On the surface, Japanese pianist Eri Yamamoto may be the most conventional artist on the intrepid AUM Fidelity label. Yet there are virtues in Yamamoto’s music that are rarely heard elsewhere. One is the depth of her rapport with a rhythm section that has gigged with her regularly for over 13 years, making whole a steady stream of new compositions from her prolific muse. Another is Yamamoto’s ability to evoke ephemeral feelings and concepts with such precise intonation. On this new album’s opener, “Memory Dance,” she commemorates deceased friends with lyrical riffs of increasing intensity, altering their emphasis and tempo ever so slightly without milking the resonance—and trusting bassist David Ambrose and drummer Ikuo Takeuchi will provide the shading while honoring her subtlety.
That longstanding but still delicate balance is altered a bit on Firefly, however. It is the Yamamoto Trio’s first live recording, a setting that almost inevitably generates fervor, and Ambrose and Takeuchi are more prominent and forceful in the mix on these eight new originals. It enhances the caliber of their solos and exchanges with Yamamoto on the evocative title track and the sweet gambol of “Playground.” But it’s preferable when Yamamoto is more obviously first among equals, because she is best equipped to add gravitas and emotional heft to the lyricism of her songs. (Or maybe I just cherish the trio’s studio status quo.)
Firefly closes with “Real Story,” probably the most expressive blues Yamamoto has written in years, although it remains a slinky, midtempo affair. Here is the vehicle for more loose-limbed phrases, but Yamamoto, like her mentor, Tommy Flanagan, sounds august even when she’s being impish, and even as the emotions are so effectively seeping through.
Gregory Porter
Liquid Spirit
Gregory Porter has a lot to live up to. Widespread critical acclaim, Grammy nominations and reviewers suggesting that he's the next big jazz star, the man to bring jazz back to mainstream popularity, all lay a big artistic burden on his (admittedly quite broad) shoulders. Liquid Spirit is his third album and it heralds a move to a major label, Blue Note. Maybe that just raises expectations even higher. No matter—Porter meets, and even exceeds, such expectations.
Porter's voice is a joy to hear: warm, engaging, capable of conveying emotion with subtlety. He's technically impressive, but he never uses technique just to impress. He's a fine songwriter as well, combining beautiful melodies with lyrics that tell stories and express feelings that seem to come straight from the singer's heart.
For Liquid Spirit Porter has retained a quintet of musicians from his second album, Be Good (Motéma, 2012). The saxophones of Yosuke Sato
and Tivon Pennicott come together to excellent effect on the hard bop-come-gospel flavored title track, the soulful "Movin'" and the cheerful "Wind Song" but the album's finest moments appear when the instrumental accompaniment is pared down to just Chip Crawford's piano, Aaron James' bass and Emanuel Harrold's drums.
The sad but beautiful "Water Under Bridges" keeps things really simple: just Porter's voice and Crawford's piano. The result is a three and a half minute triumph: bluesy, heartfelt and heartbreaking. "Hey Laura" and "Brown Grass" run it a close second, both songs enlivened by Harrold's sympathetic drumming. "Wind Song" is more upbeat, a celebration. Soul classic "The 'In' Crowd" swings, Harrold and James laying down the groove, Crawford crafting a strong solo and Porter making it clear that he's in with the "In" crowd—not boasting, just telling it like it is.
There's just one small cautionary note. "When Love Was King" and Sammy Cahn and Jules Styne's "I Fall In Love Too Easily," the album's closing tracks, clock in at almost seven and eight minutes respectively, double the length of most of the songs. Despite Porter's superb vocals, the songs tend to meander and lose focus: a rather downbeat follow on from the gorgeous "Movin.'"
Intriguingly, while Porter's debut album, Water (Motéma, 2010) gained a Grammy nomination for Best Jazz Vocal Album his nomination for "Real Good Hands" from Be Good (Motéma, 2012) was in the Best Traditional R&B Performance category. There are performances on Liquid Spirit that could readily be considered for jazz, R&B, soul or gospel awards. Porter makes the transition between genres with apparently effortless ease—he's a singer and a songwriter at the top of his game and Liquid Spirit is an inspiration.Track Listing:
No Love Dying; Liquid Spirit; Lonesome Lover; Water Under Bridges; Hey Laura; Musical Genocide; Wolfcry; Free; Brown Grass; Wind Song; The “In” Crowd; Movin'; When Love Was King; I Fall In Love Too Easily.
Personnel:
Gregory Porter: vocals; Yosuke Sato: alto saxophone; Tivon Pennicott: tenor saxophone; Chip Crawford: piano; Aaron James: double bass; Emanuel Harold: drums.
Carla Bley/ Andy Sheppard/ Steve Swallow
Trios
By John Kelman
In a career more defined by memorable compositions than instrumental acumen, it's easy to forget that Carla Bley may not be the most virtuosic pianist on the planet, but she's a far more than capable one, as evidenced on duo recordings like Are We There Yet? (Watt, 1999), with life partner/bassist Steve Swallow , and Songs With Legs (WATT, 1995), a trio date with longtime collaborator, saxophonist Andy Sheppard —also heard in Bley's larger ensemble of Appearing Nightly (Watt/ECM, 2008) and quartet session, The Lost Chords (Watt/ECM, 2004). On Swallow's recent Into the Woodwork (XtraWATT/ECM, 2013), Bley proved a clever, quirky and comedic organist; with Trios—an album that, perhaps for the first time ever, features absolutely no new compositions—Bley reunites the Songs With Legs trio, refocusing attention on her thoughtful, precise piano work.
That's not to suggest there isn't still a clever compositional mind at work in these fresh, intimate arrangements of music ranging from Bley's elegiac "Utviklingssang," her most-recorded ballad that first appeared on Social Studies (Watt, 1981), to lesser-known but still previously recorded suites including "The Girl Who Cried Champagne," from the aptly titled Sextet (Watt, 1987) and "Wildlife," heard for the first time on the larger ensemble session Night-Glo (Watt, 1986). Only the dark-hued "Vashkar"—one of Bley's most well-known tunes, having appeared on Tony Williams ' fusion classic Lifetime (Polydor, 1969) and, most recently, on John McLaughlin and Carlos Santana 's Invitation to Illumination: Live at Montreux 2011 (Eagle Vision, 2013)—is played on record by Bley for the first time.
Driven by Swallow's superb time—all the more essential to a group's without a drummer—Bley's reading of "Vashkar" opens with the pair exploring its mid-eastern modality for a full ninety second before Sheppard comes in, on soprano, to double its memorable yet quirky melody with Bley's right hand. Sheppard's star has been on the ascendancy for years, but most recently on the superb Trio Libre (ECM, 2012), his second recording as a leader for the label. Here, he demonstrates the same kind of care-ridden patience, his solo reflecting a trio whose ears are wide open, meticulously responding to each others' every move. Even as they adhere to the song's form, there's the sense that were this to be immediately followed by another take, it would be an entirely different experience.
Swallow introduces "Utviklingssang" alone, its haunting melody soon joined by Bley, whose thoughtful introduction of a contrapuntal theme and spartan supporting chords yield to sparer accompaniment still when Sheppard finally enters. While time is something to which the trio adheres carefully when required—Swallow's inimitable swing fundamental to the first section of "Les Trois Lagons (d'après Henri Matisse)"—Trios' ultimate beauty is in the interpretive nuances that allow time to be ever-so-slightly pliant—subtly stretched and compressed to imbue these five pieces with their own personalities.
The balance of the program consists of longer, multipart compositions, but remains underscored by the same attention to detail. Without muss or fuss, Bley, Swallow and Sheppard have, with Trios, created that most perfect of chamber records, filled with shrewd surprises and a delicate dramaturgy that reveals itself further with each and every listen.
Track Listing:
That's not to suggest there isn't still a clever compositional mind at work in these fresh, intimate arrangements of music ranging from Bley's elegiac "Utviklingssang," her most-recorded ballad that first appeared on Social Studies (Watt, 1981), to lesser-known but still previously recorded suites including "The Girl Who Cried Champagne," from the aptly titled Sextet (Watt, 1987) and "Wildlife," heard for the first time on the larger ensemble session Night-Glo (Watt, 1986). Only the dark-hued "Vashkar"—one of Bley's most well-known tunes, having appeared on Tony Williams ' fusion classic Lifetime (Polydor, 1969) and, most recently, on John McLaughlin and Carlos Santana 's Invitation to Illumination: Live at Montreux 2011 (Eagle Vision, 2013)—is played on record by Bley for the first time.
Driven by Swallow's superb time—all the more essential to a group's without a drummer—Bley's reading of "Vashkar" opens with the pair exploring its mid-eastern modality for a full ninety second before Sheppard comes in, on soprano, to double its memorable yet quirky melody with Bley's right hand. Sheppard's star has been on the ascendancy for years, but most recently on the superb Trio Libre (ECM, 2012), his second recording as a leader for the label. Here, he demonstrates the same kind of care-ridden patience, his solo reflecting a trio whose ears are wide open, meticulously responding to each others' every move. Even as they adhere to the song's form, there's the sense that were this to be immediately followed by another take, it would be an entirely different experience.
Swallow introduces "Utviklingssang" alone, its haunting melody soon joined by Bley, whose thoughtful introduction of a contrapuntal theme and spartan supporting chords yield to sparer accompaniment still when Sheppard finally enters. While time is something to which the trio adheres carefully when required—Swallow's inimitable swing fundamental to the first section of "Les Trois Lagons (d'après Henri Matisse)"—Trios' ultimate beauty is in the interpretive nuances that allow time to be ever-so-slightly pliant—subtly stretched and compressed to imbue these five pieces with their own personalities.
The balance of the program consists of longer, multipart compositions, but remains underscored by the same attention to detail. Without muss or fuss, Bley, Swallow and Sheppard have, with Trios, created that most perfect of chamber records, filled with shrewd surprises and a delicate dramaturgy that reveals itself further with each and every listen.
Track Listing:
Utviklingssang; Vashkar; Les Trois Lagons (d'après Henri Matisse): Plate XVII, Plate XVIII, Plate XIX; Wildlife: Horns, Paws Without Claws, Sex With Birds; The Girl Who Cried Champagne: Part 1, Part 2, Part 3.
Personnel:
Personnel:
Carla Bley: piano; Andy Sheppard: tenor and soprano saxophones; Steve Swallow: bass.
Ahmad Jamal
Saturday Morning: La Buissonne Studio Sessions
By Ian Patterson
By Ian Patterson
Just over a year after Blue Moon (Jazzbook Records, 2012) —Jamal's stellar homage to American cinema and Broadway—the Pittsburgh pianist returns in the same rich vein of form on Saturday Morning. Blue Moon earned a Grammy nomination, and for the second time in recent years Jamal was invited to open the Lincoln Center season in September; clearly, Jamal is enjoying his status as one of jazz's great, elder statesmen. Saturday Morning could almost be part of the same sessions that produced Blue Moon with its mixture of standards, new compositions and reworked older material. Like Blue Moon, this recording occasionally evokes his classic 1950s Argo years, only there's more meat on Jamal's arrangements these days, and remarkably, greater fire in his fingers.
Though drummer Herlin Riley and former Weather Report percussionist Manolo Badrena
first played with Jamal in the 1980s, these latter two Jamal recordings have the feel of a new quartet, especially in the wake of the departure of long-standing drummer Idris Muhammad and bassist James Cammack. Happily, bassist Reginald Veal is much more prominent than on Blue Moon, engendering real swing and irresistible funk grooves. Stepping into Cammack's shoes—Jamal's bassist for 29 years—can't have been easy but Veal's lyricism, bold motifs and striking improvisations color the music greatly. Badrena conversely, plies his wares more subtly than before, while Riley keeps a simple, in the pocket groove throughout, rarely slipping the leash.
Jamal has created his own language on piano; on "Back to the Future" his jangling left-hand powers like rising flood water while rhapsodic right-hand explorations alternate between chordal steps, spinning flurries and long, cascading runs. On this opening number Jamal's two-handed synchronized run towards the finishing line and his trademark final punctuation epitomizes the sense of drama that inhabits his play. On "I'll always be with You" Jamal emerges from a tempestuous improvisation to land on the most delicate of blue notes, as though flung from a washing machine only to land on his feet immaculately attired.
Jamal admirers and detractors alike point to his continual, restless motivic development and compositions like the gently paced "Edith's Cake" and the grooving "The Line" have enough "fiddling and diddling"—to quote Cammack from a 2012 interview—to delight and frustrate according to taste. At his most fluid, when there don't seem to be enough keys on the piano to accommodate his dazzling runs, it's easy to see where pianist Hiromi Uehara finds much of her inspiration.
For all his technical dexterity and passion, Jamal is never more at home than when caressing and teasing the melody of a ballad. There are a few to savor here, notably a majestic rendition of "I'm In the Mood for Love" and Duke Ellington 's "I Got it Bad and that Ain't Good." On the latter, Jamal plays with the melody, letting it drift before gently rekindling the flame. Bass, brushes and percussion lend tender support. Jamal can't resist quoting the melody to "Take The A-Train" here, and on numerous occasions throughout the album he exercises his penchant for quoting the popular melodies he has breathed for a lifetime.
Jamal pays tribute to pianist Horace Silver on the Afro-Caribean flavored "Silver," whose simple melody and uncluttered arrangement harks back to the Jamal of yesteryear. Similarly, the sparse architecture and beautiful minimalism of Saturday Morning recall At The Pershing:But Not For Me (Argo, 1958)—a million-selling album that cemented Jamal's reputation as an original and influential voice. The lilting melody of the title track is hypnotic enough for the quartet to repeat it throughout the song's ten-minute duration without it ever sounding less than charming —a signature tune to replace "Poinciana" perhaps?
The title track from One (20th Century Fox Records, 1978) seems like an unnecessary indulgence on an album that weighs in at a healthy one hour. Nevertheless, its jaunty melody and infectious groove will appeal to new fans and maybe send others back to rediscover an overlooked recording nestled in the middle ground of a discography that dates to 1951. "Saturday Morning (reprise)"—a three and a half-minute radio-friendly version—serves up that delightful melody one last time and burns it into the subconscious mind—if it wasn't already there.
Jamal proves once again that he's lost none of his customary elegance or electricity. His expansive imagination as an interpreter of standards—particularly ballads—remains almost unmatched. The four musicians sound fully molded to each other contours and the result is music that is fantastically tight yet exhilarating. Jamal is still minting great melodies, still blazing his own trail and—for many—still leading the way.
Track Listing:
Though drummer Herlin Riley and former Weather Report percussionist Manolo Badrena
first played with Jamal in the 1980s, these latter two Jamal recordings have the feel of a new quartet, especially in the wake of the departure of long-standing drummer Idris Muhammad and bassist James Cammack. Happily, bassist Reginald Veal is much more prominent than on Blue Moon, engendering real swing and irresistible funk grooves. Stepping into Cammack's shoes—Jamal's bassist for 29 years—can't have been easy but Veal's lyricism, bold motifs and striking improvisations color the music greatly. Badrena conversely, plies his wares more subtly than before, while Riley keeps a simple, in the pocket groove throughout, rarely slipping the leash.
Jamal has created his own language on piano; on "Back to the Future" his jangling left-hand powers like rising flood water while rhapsodic right-hand explorations alternate between chordal steps, spinning flurries and long, cascading runs. On this opening number Jamal's two-handed synchronized run towards the finishing line and his trademark final punctuation epitomizes the sense of drama that inhabits his play. On "I'll always be with You" Jamal emerges from a tempestuous improvisation to land on the most delicate of blue notes, as though flung from a washing machine only to land on his feet immaculately attired.
Jamal admirers and detractors alike point to his continual, restless motivic development and compositions like the gently paced "Edith's Cake" and the grooving "The Line" have enough "fiddling and diddling"—to quote Cammack from a 2012 interview—to delight and frustrate according to taste. At his most fluid, when there don't seem to be enough keys on the piano to accommodate his dazzling runs, it's easy to see where pianist Hiromi Uehara finds much of her inspiration.
For all his technical dexterity and passion, Jamal is never more at home than when caressing and teasing the melody of a ballad. There are a few to savor here, notably a majestic rendition of "I'm In the Mood for Love" and Duke Ellington 's "I Got it Bad and that Ain't Good." On the latter, Jamal plays with the melody, letting it drift before gently rekindling the flame. Bass, brushes and percussion lend tender support. Jamal can't resist quoting the melody to "Take The A-Train" here, and on numerous occasions throughout the album he exercises his penchant for quoting the popular melodies he has breathed for a lifetime.
Jamal pays tribute to pianist Horace Silver on the Afro-Caribean flavored "Silver," whose simple melody and uncluttered arrangement harks back to the Jamal of yesteryear. Similarly, the sparse architecture and beautiful minimalism of Saturday Morning recall At The Pershing:But Not For Me (Argo, 1958)—a million-selling album that cemented Jamal's reputation as an original and influential voice. The lilting melody of the title track is hypnotic enough for the quartet to repeat it throughout the song's ten-minute duration without it ever sounding less than charming —a signature tune to replace "Poinciana" perhaps?
The title track from One (20th Century Fox Records, 1978) seems like an unnecessary indulgence on an album that weighs in at a healthy one hour. Nevertheless, its jaunty melody and infectious groove will appeal to new fans and maybe send others back to rediscover an overlooked recording nestled in the middle ground of a discography that dates to 1951. "Saturday Morning (reprise)"—a three and a half-minute radio-friendly version—serves up that delightful melody one last time and burns it into the subconscious mind—if it wasn't already there.
Jamal proves once again that he's lost none of his customary elegance or electricity. His expansive imagination as an interpreter of standards—particularly ballads—remains almost unmatched. The four musicians sound fully molded to each other contours and the result is music that is fantastically tight yet exhilarating. Jamal is still minting great melodies, still blazing his own trail and—for many—still leading the way.
Track Listing:
Back To The Future; I’ll Always Be With You; Saturday Morning; Edith’s Cake; The Line; I’m In The Mood For Love; Firefly; Silver; I Got It Bad And That Ain’t Good; One; Saturday Morning.
Personnel:
Personnel:
Ahmad Jamal: piano; Reginald Veal: double bass; Herlin Riley: drums; Manolo Badrena: percussion.
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