Styles: Jazz
Year: 2009
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 61:46
Size: 141,4 MB
Art: Front
(5:19) 1. Sporty Portia
(6:30) 2. When All The Men Wore Hats
(7:20) 3. Seven Storey Mountain
(5:14) 4. Footsteps
(8:14) 5. Soul Purpose
(7:13) 6. With Hodges In Mind
(6:56) 7. Sheer Force Of Bill
(7:04) 8. 12 Ton Blues
(7:33) 9. Now And Then
(0:19) 10. Movie Theme
Year: 2009
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 61:46
Size: 141,4 MB
Art: Front
(5:19) 1. Sporty Portia
(6:30) 2. When All The Men Wore Hats
(7:20) 3. Seven Storey Mountain
(5:14) 4. Footsteps
(8:14) 5. Soul Purpose
(7:13) 6. With Hodges In Mind
(6:56) 7. Sheer Force Of Bill
(7:04) 8. 12 Ton Blues
(7:33) 9. Now And Then
(0:19) 10. Movie Theme
Griffith Hiltz Trio is comprised of long-time Toronto jazz men Johnny Griffiths (saxophone), Nathan Hiltz (guitar) and Sly Juhas (drums). Another well-known Toronto jazz fixture, Don Thompson, produced Now & Then and plays vibes or keyboards on half of the ten tracks. He also composed “12 Ton Blues.” All other tracks are composed by Griffith and/or Hiltz. It is notable that although the trio has no traditional bass player there is a strong bass component provided by Hiltz’s use of bass pedals. The jam duo of Griffith and Hiltz credit the addition of the pedals to their weekly sessions for inspiring them to add a drummer, Juhas, thus creating the trio.
The material is well chosen for showcasing the broad talents of the trio rather than demonstrating the individuals’ favorite honed licks and gimmicks (although, in live performances Griffith sometimes impressively plays alto and bass clarinet simultaneously). It allows the trio (plus one) to reveal their depth of experience as performers. With the addition of Thompson, who is well-known in Toronto and throughout Canada as a multi-instrumentalist, on much of the CD and with Griffith and Hiltz both doing double instrumental duty, the resulting sound is much larger than a simple trio. The trio’s admitted influences are Blue Note jazz and “Eastern” music, although it would seem more appropriately called “North African” (think Miles’ “Nardis” or Wayne Shorter’s “Black Nile”) which is evidenced on “Seven Storey Mountain.” The occasional use of bass clarinet does lend a non-Western exoticism to some selections (“Sporty Portia,” “Footsteps,” “Now and Then”.
The compositions are inventive and interesting with ample time for instrumental solos. The title track is a good case in point, allowing Griffith and Hiltz plenty of room for creativity. Juhas gets his spotlight on “Seven Storey Mountain” with a good long solo on drum set. Producer and mentor, Don Thompson, although often in a supporting role on keyboards, has opportunity to work with vibes on “Soul Purpose” and with keyboards on “With Hodges In Mind” and on his own “12 Ton Blues.” The sparse angular melody of “12 Ton Blues,” starting out on sax and picked up later by guitar in unison with the sax, is intriguing. The laid back spacey head sets everything up for freewheeling improvisation all around as the piece progresses. Although there are ten tracks, the final cut, “Movie Theme,” is really just a brief coda, or, I suspect, used as an intermission playoff during live performances.
Having made the point that this CD is not a collection of hot licks, there may have been a bit too much holding back in total. It could have benefited now and then (pun intended) from a little more flash and glitz which all of these performers obviously have in abundance. But, this is their first release together and all in all is a very enjoyable one from some of Toronto’s finest. http://www.muzikreviews.com/reviews.php?ID=791
The material is well chosen for showcasing the broad talents of the trio rather than demonstrating the individuals’ favorite honed licks and gimmicks (although, in live performances Griffith sometimes impressively plays alto and bass clarinet simultaneously). It allows the trio (plus one) to reveal their depth of experience as performers. With the addition of Thompson, who is well-known in Toronto and throughout Canada as a multi-instrumentalist, on much of the CD and with Griffith and Hiltz both doing double instrumental duty, the resulting sound is much larger than a simple trio. The trio’s admitted influences are Blue Note jazz and “Eastern” music, although it would seem more appropriately called “North African” (think Miles’ “Nardis” or Wayne Shorter’s “Black Nile”) which is evidenced on “Seven Storey Mountain.” The occasional use of bass clarinet does lend a non-Western exoticism to some selections (“Sporty Portia,” “Footsteps,” “Now and Then”.
The compositions are inventive and interesting with ample time for instrumental solos. The title track is a good case in point, allowing Griffith and Hiltz plenty of room for creativity. Juhas gets his spotlight on “Seven Storey Mountain” with a good long solo on drum set. Producer and mentor, Don Thompson, although often in a supporting role on keyboards, has opportunity to work with vibes on “Soul Purpose” and with keyboards on “With Hodges In Mind” and on his own “12 Ton Blues.” The sparse angular melody of “12 Ton Blues,” starting out on sax and picked up later by guitar in unison with the sax, is intriguing. The laid back spacey head sets everything up for freewheeling improvisation all around as the piece progresses. Although there are ten tracks, the final cut, “Movie Theme,” is really just a brief coda, or, I suspect, used as an intermission playoff during live performances.
Having made the point that this CD is not a collection of hot licks, there may have been a bit too much holding back in total. It could have benefited now and then (pun intended) from a little more flash and glitz which all of these performers obviously have in abundance. But, this is their first release together and all in all is a very enjoyable one from some of Toronto’s finest. http://www.muzikreviews.com/reviews.php?ID=791