JENNY SCHEINMAN

Let Go
Jerry Granelli Trio (Plunge)
by Ken Waxman
Now 72 and after almost 60 years as a professional,
drummer, Jerry Granelli has conveyed a perfect gem of
a trio to express his ideas. He, Danny Oore on soprano,
tenor, baritone saxophones and bassist/cellist Simon
Fisk move confidently through nine instant
compositions, a couple that also feature the ethereal
Scots-Gaelic vocalizing of Mary Jane Lamond.
While pretty, Lamond’s lyric delicacy is secondary
to the overall program. Most of Let Go demonstrates
how many sonic colors can be produced by three
musicians with judicious doubling or tripling. Granelli,
whose experience goes back to Vince Guaraldi’s ‘60s
piano trio, is a jazz man first and foremost, a truism
easily proven by “Bones”, the funky, yet unhurried
opener.
From then on the group investigates many forms
of improvisation, sticking pretty close to the tonal.
Especially remarkable is Oore’s technical skill on his
three horns, plus his ability, prominent on a tune like
“A Woman Who Wants To Waltz”, to stretch out the
emotional underpinning of a solo without ever
breaking the line. He can snort and squeak with the
best on baritone while on soprano his muted tone
32 March 2013 | THE NEW YORK CITY JAZZ RECORD
complements Lamond’s low-key singing on “Solaria”,
which is also notable for a scene-setting cello intro and
drum patterning that seems half Carnatic-styled and
half Krupa-swing. Fisk’s skills extend to melding
folksy riffs with Granelli’s simple ruffs on “Letter To
Bjork” or providing a double-stopping continuum on
tracks such as “Leaving” and “A Chinese Saloon”.
That last piece also highlights the drummer’s
invention. Among unison double bass thumps and
baritone sax snorts, he showcases clanging Orientalstyled
gongs, plus press rolls and a hefty but not
lumbering swing beat. Granelli’s adopted hometown
of Halifax has apparently helped him to extend his
skills and given him two fine helpmates with which to
create provocative sounds.
For more information, visit thejerrygranellitrio.bandcamp.com.
Granelli is at ShapeShifter Lab Mar. 10th. See Calendar.
Pieces
Hashem Assadullahi (OA2)
by Elliott Simon
Guitarist Justin Morell’s raga-informed intro on CD
opener “Prized Possession” entreats the listener to get
on board this somewhat disjointed but compositionally
intricate session from saxophonist Hashem Assadullahi.
Trumpeter Ron Miles’ luxuriant tone melds with
Morell’s spaciousness before Assadullahi leads the
sextet into various collectively inspired realms. Aptly
named Pieces, things evolve and devolve into songs
about lots of different subjects, using the mundane “A
Bag of Oranges”, the weird “Fingersticks” and the
mysterious “Dark Tower” to highlight and integrate a
smorgasbord of styles.
Despite all this, Assadullahi rarely loses track of
his own eclectic brand of swing. This is largely due to
bassist Tyler Abbott and drummer Ryan Biesack, who
usually succeed in holding things together. Miles
brings his gorgeous voice and elegance to many of
these pieces but the welcome surprise is pianist James
Milney, who beautifully segues between rhythm and
frontline roles. He is integral and his treatment of the
pensively delicate melody on “Harbinger” is superb.
Where things drift a bit are the middles of the longer
cuts. “Dark Tower” has a great melody and feel and
would be a super tune if it lost some of its meandering
quality. Likewise, “The Straight Man” is a vehicle that
gets lost a bit after a brilliant start.
Assadullahi is of a new generation of jazz
musicians who have the compositional understanding,
technique and improvisational skill to create complex
works with beautiful melodies while at the same
time drawing on a multitude of styles. He uses pop,
swing, straightahead, classical, free and other genres
as construction pieces. The trick is not to lose sight of
one aspect of the music at the expense of another or
throw something in for the sake of itself. That is very
tough to do and with Pieces Assadullahi largely
succeeds.
For more information, visit originarts.com. This group is at
Korzo Mar. 19th. See Calendar.
Grace Kelly
“Live At Scullers”
CD release tour
stops at
DIZZY’S CLUB COCA COLA
MARCH
5th and 6th
7:30PM AND
9:30PM
Jazz At Lincoln Center
Broadway and 60th
www.gracekellymusic.com