Dave O'Higgins - O'Higgins & Luft Play Monk & Trane

Styles: Saxophone And Guitar Jazz 
Year: 2019
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 51:36
Size: 119,3 MB
Art: Front

(4:21)  1. Naima
(5:58)  2. Little Melonae
(5:42)  3. Locomotive
(6:49)  4. Minor Mishap
(4:02)  5. I'll Wait and Pray
(5:00)  6. Trinkle-Tinkle
(4:11)  7. Like Sonny
(3:23)  8. 'Round Midnight
(4:48)  9. Spring Is Here
(6:21) 10. Dreamland
(0:57) 11. Locomotive (duo)

Hearing the young British guitarist Rob Luft for the first time on his debut album, Riser (Edition, 2017), was rather like hearing American guitarist Johnny Smith for the first time on Moonlight In Vermont (Roost, 1956). You knew you were listening to something special. And while much separates the players' styles, much unites them, too: Smith's signature was long-form chorded passages, Luft's is effervescent single-note runs, but both approaches are intensely melodic and are enabled by virtuosic techniques, lightly worn. Plays Monk & Trane was made with an identically configured lineup as the one on Riser guitar, tenor saxophone, organ, drums but it cannot really be described as a follow-up. On Riser, Luft was centre-stage on ten originals. On Plays Monk & Trane, he shares the spotlight with saxophonist Dave O'Higgins on a set of covers.

On its own terms, however, Plays Monk & Trane is delightful. The album brings together two generations of players. O'Higgins and drummer Rod Youngs have been, not fully round the block, but about halfway, while Luft and organist Scott Flanagan have yet to round the first corner. O'Higgins put out his first album, All Good Things (EFZ), in 1992. London-based, US-born Youngs debuted on Gil Scott-Heron and his Amnesia Express' Tales Of Gil Scott-Heron (Essential) in 1990. Youngs worked with Scott-Heron for over twenty years and more recently has been a member of saxophonist Denys Baptiste's band; he was a cornerstone of Baptiste's 2017 masterpiece, The Late Trane (Edition).  Plays Monk & Trane comprises five Thelonious Monk originals, ranging from the familiar ('"Round Midnight") to the lesser known ("Dreamland"), and seven other pre-modal tunes either written by John Coltrane ("Naima," "Like Sonny") or standards recorded by him during the same Prestige / Atlantic era. Tempos range from the furious to the chilled. Youngs and Flanagan play unobtrustive roles pretty much throughout, with the solos shared equally between Luft and O'Higgins.

It is a testament to Luft and O'Higgins that they succeed in making two familiar-as-they-get tunes "Naima" and "'Round Midnight"sound as fresh as spring daisies. Both are played without organ or drums and are straightforward and spellbinding and lovely. You almost wish the group had woven the same magic on more warhorses. But the lesser known tunes are shot through with the same sense of discovery. ~ Chris May https://www.allaboutjazz.com/plays-monk-and-trane-rob-luft-ubuntu-music-review-by-chris-may.php

Personnel: Rob Luft: guitar; Dave O'Higgins: tenor saxophone; Scott Flanagan: organ (2-7, 9 ,10); Rod Youngs: drums (2-7, 9, 10).

O'Higgins & Luft Play Monk & Trane

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Bill Frisell - Harmony

Styles: Guitar Jazz
Year: 2019
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 46:52
Size: 108,9 MB
Art: Front

(5:35)  1. Everywhere
(4:07)  2. God's Wing'd Horse
(4:06)  3. Fifty Years
(3:56)  4. Hard Times
(3:07)  5. Deep Dead Blue
(4:40)  6. There In A Dream
(3:20)  7. Lonesome
(3:23)  8. On The Street Where You Live
(2:29)  9. How Many Miles?
(3:54) 10. Lush Life
(1:17) 11. Honest Man
(2:00) 12. Red River Valley
(1:40) 13. Curiosity
(3:12) 14. Where Have All The Flowers Gone?

Iconic guitarist-composer Bill Frisell has chosen to primarily emphasize the Americana side of his music for his debut as a leader for Blue Note Records. When Frisell organized his new band with vocalist Petra Haden, cellist Hank Roberts and guitarist-bassist Luke Bergman he was struck by the fact that all of the band members but him sang, so their vocal blend became the group's signature sound as well as the inspiration for the name Harmony. Upon first hearing, the album sounds rooted in traditional American music, but in fact eight of the fourteen selections were composed by Frisell. The set leads off with three of his: "Everywhere" and "Fifty Years" both employ vocals in a traditional musical setting, and it is notable that the first sound is a cappella vocals. "God's Wing'd Horse" (words by Julie Miller) adds lyrics to the mix but, as the title implies, they sound as if they could easily be from a folk song. All three vocalists harmonize with only guitar accompaniment: Frisell solos a bit here, but solos are not the focus in this music. It is an ensemble sound above all.

Stephen Foster's "Hard Times" is the first of the traditional selections, beautifully rendered with only voices and guitars. "Red River Valley" strips the arrangement down to just the three voices; Frisell lays out completely, an impressive commitment to the vocal blend that is the heart of the group. Pete Seeger's "Where Have All The Flowers Gone" gets a very modern arrangement, the mournful subject intensified by new harmonies and a doleful vocal performance by Haden. The tunes that are neither traditional nor original are an interesting and varied lot. "Deep Dead Blue" is a collaboration between Elvis Costello and Frisell from their album Deep Dead Blue (Nonesuch Records, 1995). Petra sings her late bassist-composer father Charlie Haden's "There In A Dream," an atmospheric noir tune first heard on the Charlie Haden Quartet West's Now Is the Hour (Verve, 1996). 

Billy Strayhorn's classic "Lush Life" is the one unambiguously jazz entry. It's a beautiful, minimal duet performance by Frisell and Haden. Frisell fans should have learned long ago to keep an open mind. This album has arguably less of a guitar focus than any previous one. Yet it is suffused with his genre-free love of music, and his guitar-playing remains a foundation element. It's a beautiful group sound, with the name Harmony very well deserved. ~ Mark Sullivan https://www.allaboutjazz.com/harmony-bill-frisell-blue-note-records-review-by-mark-sullivan.php

Personnel: Bill Frisell: guitar; Petra Haden: voice; Hank Roberts: cello, voice; Luke Bergman: baritone guitar, acoustic guitar, bass, voice.

Harmony

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