heart of gold - The New York City Jazz Record

Nothing To Hide
Jason Palmer (SteepleChase)
by Russ Musto
Despite possessing a pure tone, virtuoso technique
and wide-ranging knowledge of the jazz canon, Jason
Palmer remains relatively unheralded. Nothing To
Hide, a fine followup to his impressive debut of
originals Songbook, shows a similar adventurousness
on a program of imaginative interpretations of classics
by Miles Davis, Clifford Brown, Donald Byrd, Lee
Morgan, Freddie Hubbard and Booker Little, along
with two of his own pieces performed with his regular
working quintet of altoist Mike Thomas, guitarist Greg
Duncan, bassist Lim Yang and drummer Lee Fish.
Opening with Byrd’s “Fly Little Bird Fly” Palmer
quickly demonstrates his innovative personality as an
arranger. Slowing down the tempo and changing the
time signature to a swinging 5/4 he makes the piece
his own, an excellent vehicle for his thoughtful
improvising, complemented by Thomas’ fiery alto.
Similarly intrepid orchestrations of Brown’s “Larue”
(interpolating the composer’s “Delilah” and an
original bass figure), Morgan’s “The Gigolo” (in 9/4
with another original bassline), Hubbard’s “Luana”
(slowing the tempo and melding it with his own
“Lower 9th Ward”) and Davis’ “Half Nelson”
(arranged by Fish in 9/4) display a penetrating
individuality. Only on Booker Little’s “Strength and
Sanity” does Palmer remain faithful to the original,
revealing a deep respect for the late trumpeter, whose
influence on his own compositional style is evident on
the originals “Nothing To Hide” and “Here And Now”
- the date’s most forward-looking entries.
At the Jazz Gallery Dec. 9th, the group (Mitsuru
Yoshizumi subbing for Yang) performed two sets of
intriguing originals and orchestrations (mainly
arrangements of songs by funk futurist Janelle Monáe)
that clearly identified Palmer as a visionary player
with an astounding vocabulary, playing music in a
uniquely personal voice, which while steeped in the
feats of the past, pushes inexorably towards tomorrow.
For more information, visit steeplechase.dk. Palmer is at
Jazz Standard Jan. 25th with Grace Kelly. See Calendar.
Nebulosa (featuring Tim Berne)
Hugo Carvalhais (Clean Feed)
by Stuart Broomer
Thanks to the very active Clean Feed and Creative
Sources labels, Portuguese free jazz and improvising
musicians have developed an international presence in
the past decade. The more mainstream side of
Portuguese jazz is less well known abroad, though
lately the Orquestra Jazz de Matosinhos, resident in
the city of Porto, has raised its profile in recordings
with Lee Konitz, Chris Cheek and Kurt Rosenwinkel.
Here bassist Hugo Carvalhais presents another facet of
Portuguese jazz, leading a trio with pianist-synth
player Gabriel Pinto and drummer Mario Costa.
It’s a debut for the young band, but they
demonstrate a distinct identity, further developing
and testing it in company with alto saxophonist Tim
Berne, present on six of the ten tracks and most of the
movements of the title suite. The group’s appetite for
space is immediately apparent in “Intro”, isolated
drum beats, bass thumps and piano chords somehow
articulating the most minimalist and attenuated Latin
beat. As the CD develops the group shows affinities
with Maiden Voyage-era Herbie Hancock, a taste for
broad consonant intervals and hanging resonance,
though always pared down, whether it’s Pinto’s
hanging chords or Carvalhais’ warmly tuneful bass.
The fundamentally architectural style may seem
like an odd fit for the emotive intensity of Berne, with
his alto tone rapidly moving from acid to sweet and his
vocabulary of coruscating runs and sudden asides, but
it’s that encounter that creates some of the greatest
interest here. Together the cool sense of distance and
insistent heat create fractures and openings in the
music’s surface, through which something fresh
emerges. The trio’s concluding “Redemption” is a
moment of profound and moving reflection, the
ultimate achievement of its spare lyricism.
For more information, visit cleanfeed-records.com. Tim Berne
is at Cornelia Street Café Jan. 6th and The Stone Jan. 7th with
Drew Gress and in duo with Matt Mitchell. See Calendar.
Live at the Café Damberd
Billy Hart Trio (Enja)
by Jeff Stockton
There aren’t many opportunities these days for
younger jazz musicians to apprentice with past
masters. Artistically, jazz music finds itself in a
position of legitimacy - so many of jazz’ elder
statesmen have gone to colleges and universities as
professors in order to pass along their tools and
techniques. And of course economically, it’s perhaps
harder than ever to keep a band touring and recording
and working together for any length of time. German
saxist Johannes Enders is a respected educator in his
country and he’s (relatively) young. What sets Enders
apart is that he’s been successful commercially (this
CD won Germany’s Echo award in its category for
most units sold) and he plays in the Billy Hart Trio.
Hart’s drumming resumé is long and
distinguished (from Otis Redding to Miles Davis) but
his moments as a leader have been rare. In addition to
this trio, Hart leads an exciting quartet (with Mark
Turner, Ethan Iverson and Ben Street) and the music of
these bands is straightahead without being stodgy;
they push the limits of melody and harmony, but don’t
obliterate them. Recorded live at the Café Damberd in
Belgium, the sound of this CD is crisp and direct and
captures the electric atmosphere of the room. Enders’
obvious influence is Coltrane, but not the sheets-ofsound
version, more the standards player. Because
Enders has composed five of the six tunes, he is closer
in spirit to Blue Note-era Wayne Shorter, echoing the
saxophonist’s ability to get inside a melody and
wrestle his way out.
Each player gets his chance to solo and when Hart
takes off on “Re-Traning”, he ranges across the kit
with pounding fists while his foot keeps a steady pulse
on the kick drum. Kenny Barron’s “Voyage” features
another Hart solo, this time graceful and nimble and
Enders’ tone is commanding, confident and not-quite-
Ben-Webster brawny. The band puts all of the pieces
together on “Please Stop Me Now”. Opening at a
ballad tempo, Enders searches with his horn around
the midrange while Hart’s mallets and Martin
Zenker’s arco bass set the tone. When Hart picks up his
sticks as well as the pace, Zenker puts down his bow
and Enders invites you in, his low honks and fractured
highs building a masterful three-part performance.
For more information, visit enjarecords.com. Hart is at
Dizzy’s Club Jan. 3rd with George Mraz, Smalls Jan. 14th-
15th with Jean-Michel Pilc and Jazz Standard Jan. 27th-
30th with John Abercrombie. See Calendar.
SLAM is proud to have
2 CDs included in AAJ-NY's
"BEST OF 2010”
STEVE LACY/MAL WALDRON -
Let’s Call This…Esteem (SLAM-Silta)
&
VAN HOVE/DUNMALL/ROGERS/LYTTON-
Asynchronous (SLAM)
Please visit us at:
www.slamproductions.net
email: slamprods@aol.com
“2011 will be even better!”
ALLABOUTJAZZ-NEW YORK | January 2011 31