Archive for the ‘Christian McBride’ Category
Kenny Kirkland: Kenny Kirkland (1991 – Grp)
Keyboardist Kenny Kirkland’s long-overdue debut as a leader really stretches his talents and is occasionally unpredictable. Virtually each of the performances has its own personality and the personnel and instrumentation differ throughout the release. Among the highlights is “Mr. J.C.” (which features some stormy Branford Marsalis tenor), an electric Latin but still boppish update of Bud Powell’s “Celia” (taken as a duet with percussionist Don Alias), the struttin’ “Steepian Faith,” a driving rendition of Ornette Coleman’s “When Will the Blues Leave” that has some free bop alto from Roderick Ward, and Latin versions (with percussionist Jerry Gonzalez) of two standards not normally thought of as belonging to that idiom: Wayne Shorter’s “Ana Maria” and Thelonious Monk’s “Criss Cross.” This album has more than its share of brilliant moments.
Scott Yanow, All Music Guide
1. Mr. J.C.
2. Midnight Silence
3. El Rey – Watts
4. Sleepian Faith
5. Celia
6. Chance
7. When Will the Blues Leave?
8. Ana Maria – Shorter
9. Revelations
10. Criss-Cross
11. Blasphemy
Personnel:
Kenny Kirkland (Piano – Keyb)
Branford Marsalis (Sopr &Ten Sax)
Roderick Ward (Alto Sax)
Roderick Ward (Alto Sax)
Robert Hurst (Bass)
Christian McBride (Bass),
Charnett Moffett (Bass),
Jeff “Tain” Watts (Drums)
Don Alias (Percu & Bongos)
Steve Berrios (Percu & Drums),
Jerry Gonzalez (Percu & Conga)
Original Release Date: 1991 – Label: Grp Records
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Christian McBride: Kind of Brown (2009 – Mack Avenue Records)
Bassist/composer Christian McBride is one of the most in-demand sidemen in the music business, having toured and recorded with the likes of Herbie Hancock, Chick Corea, Diana Krall and Sting. The Philadelphia-native has also made a name for himself as a daring leader, exploring both acoustic and electronic styles. For Kind of Brown, his premier date for the Detroit-based Mack Avenue Records, McBride introduces his new acoustic jazz quintet Inside Straight, featuring pianist Eric Scott Reed, saxophonist Steve Wilson, vibraphonist Warren Wolf, Jr. and drummer Carl Allen.
Pat Martino: Think Tank (2004 – Blue Note)
It’s been nearly twenty years since Pat Martino’s comeback from a near-fatal brain aneurysm. In that time he’s re-established himself as one of the jazz world’s premier guitarists, a technically advanced post bop player who combines forward-thinking musical ideas with native Philly grit; think Pat Metheny with more soul.
Think Tank , as the name suggests, finds Martino at his most cerebral, which has its pros and cons. The title track, for example, is a blues of sorts built on an equation based on the letters of John Coltrane’s name, which may sound like an exercise for a composition class, but manages to hold together pretty well organically. Coltrane, a Philadelphia mentor of Martino’s, is a recurring reference on the album, both indirectly in Martino’s intensely spiritual and intellectual approach to the music, and directly on the funk-based original “Phineas Trane as well as on an extended romp through Coltrane’s “Africa.
Martino is backed by a lineup that includes heavyweights on every instrument: Joe Lovano on tenor sax, Gonzalo Rubalcaba on piano, Christian McBride on bass and Lewis Nash on drums. And while many all star lineups fail to live up to their promise, this one mostly comes through. All the musicians have moments of magic, especially Rubalcaba, the Cuban-born virtuoso who seems to have outgrown his youthful habit of simply playing as many notes as he can as quickly as he can. He shows welcome restraint here, especially on the ballad “Sun on My Hands, where he and Martino play off each other with beauty and subtlety. Martino himself is much more subdued than in the past, offering harmonically complex solos that challenge listeners but retain enough recognizable blues and bop roots to be accessible.
If there’s any complaint about Think Tank, it’s that it lacks some of the flat-out fire of Martino’s 2001 Grammy-nominated Live at Yoshi’s , a groove-laden organ trio summit with Joey De Francesco and Billy Hart. Martino may overthink things a bit this time around, but it’s a serious album from a serious artist and well-worth checking out.
Joel Roberts (All About Jazz)
The Phineas Trane
2 Think Tank
3 Dozen Down
4 Sun On My Hands
5 Africa
6 Quatessence
7 Before You Ask
8 Earthlings
Personnel:
Pat Martino (guitar)
Joe Lovano (tenor saxophone)
Gonzalo Rubalcaba (piano)
Christian McBride (bass)
Lewis Nash (drums)
Original Release Date: 2003 – Label: Blue Note Records
Recorded at the Sony Studios, New York, New York in January 2003.
THINK TANK was nominated for the 2004 Grammy Award for Best Jazz Instrumental Album. “Africa” was nominated for Best Jazz Instrumental Solo.
Ryan Kisor – On the One (1993, Sony)
One of the youngest of the so-called Young Lions, Ryan Kisor first gained attention when he won the Thelonious Monk Institute of Jazz’s first trumpet competition in 1990 at age 17. He had earlier studied trumpet with his father, played with a local band when he was ten, and started studying classical music two years later. Kisor discovered jazz at 14 and developed quickly, playing both jazz and classical music locally. In the summer of 1988, he was inspired at a jazz camp by Clark Terry. After winning the Monk contest, he was signed by Columbia, coming out with a couple of interesting if slightly premature CDs as a leader.
In “On The One” Ryan Kisor’s playing is reminiscent of Art Blakey-type hard bop. He is accompanied in this albums by such renown musicians such as saxophonist Chris Potter; bassist Christian Mcbride; drummer Lewis Nash; and pianist Mulgrew Miller.
Original Release Date: April 13, 1993
Label: Sony
Across Rhythm 