{"id":10037,"date":"2018-08-23T22:59:29","date_gmt":"2018-08-24T05:59:29","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/rifftides\/?p=10037"},"modified":"2018-08-23T23:10:05","modified_gmt":"2018-08-24T06:10:05","slug":"headed-toward-the-weekend-and-still-catching-up","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/rifftides\/2018\/08\/headed-toward-the-weekend-and-still-catching-up\/","title":{"rendered":"Headed Toward The Weekend And Still Catching Up"},"content":{"rendered":"

Fred Hersch Trio<\/strong>, Heartsongs<\/a><\/em> (Sunnyside)<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>Sunnyside\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s reissue of Hersch\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s 1989 sessions reminds us how impressive the pianist was in his recording debut as a leader at the age of 34. Following success as a sideman with Woody Herman, Art Farmer, Jane Ira Bloom, Stan Getz and others, Hersch\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s keyboard touch, harmonic savvy and rhythmic assurance showed that he had become a major player. Beyond that, his interaction with bassist Michael Formanek and drummer Jeff Hirshfiield established that he was in full flight as a wise leader.<\/p>\n

Hersch\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s leadership wisdom is further confirmed in his choice of songs. In addition to his own title tune and his Bill Evan tribute \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Evanessence,\u00e2\u20ac\u009d now virtually a jazz standard, the trio performs perfectly integrated versions of pieces by Wayne Shorter, Thelonious Monk and Ornette Coleman. There is a glorious treatment of Gershwin\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s \u00e2\u20ac\u0153The Man I Love.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d Hersch\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s senses of timing and humor show up in the trio\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s abrupt ending of Shorter\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Fall\u00e2\u20ac\u009d and in his \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Beam Me Up,\u00e2\u20ac\u009d with its abstract piano interjections and the energy and inventiveness of Hirshfield\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s drumming. For Hersch devotees, the re-release of this important chapter in his development is a windfall.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

McClenty Hunter, Jr. The Groove Hunter<\/a><\/em> (strikezone)<\/p>\n

Drummer Hunter\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s album brings together trumpeter Eddie Henderson, alto saxophonist Donald\"\"<\/a> Harrison, guitarist Dave Stryker and pianist Eric Reed, among other prominent members of the New York jazz scene. The atmosphere may recall certain aspects of Art Blakey\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s post-bop groups, but Hunter\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s drumming has a distinct personality. Memorable moments include Reed\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s fleet piano on \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Blue Chopsticks,\u00e2\u20ac\u009d a seldom-performed Herbie Nichols composition. Other highlights: Hunter\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s compelling solo introduction to John Coltrane\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Countdown\u00e2\u20ac\u009d at a blistering tempo, and Stryker\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s reflective guitar in another rarity, the late Gary McFarland\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Sack Full Of Dreams.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d Listeners discovering Hunter by way of this variegated album are likely to find him a welcome surprise.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Roberto Magris<\/strong> and The MUH Trio, Prague After Dark<\/a><\/em> (JMood)<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>MUH is the trio acronym of Italian pianist Magris and two veteran Czech jazz stars, bassist Frantisek Uhlir and drummer Jaromir Helesic. They offer a stimulating variety of pieces that, like the Hunter McLenty album mentioned above, include a Herbie Nichols composition, in this case \u00e2\u20ac\u0153The Third World.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d If the inclusion of these pieces indicates that Nichols\u00e2\u20ac\u2122 invaluable recordings may make a comeback, it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s a healthy sign. Uhlir\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s solo on Magris\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s title tune is typical of the bassist\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s virtuosity. His tone and facility place him among the instrument\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s leading players. Uhlir\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s arco work on his piece called \u00e2\u20ac\u0153From Heart To Heart\u00e2\u20ac\u009d is a textbook example of what a bowed bass can accomplish in the hands of a conservatory-trained player, but there is nothing academic about Uhlir’s emotional content. A triptych of Magris compositions follows, the lively \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Song For An African Child\u00e2\u20ac\u009d leading the way, \u00e2\u20ac\u0153A Summer\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s Kiss,\u00e2\u20ac\u009d as tender as the title suggests, and \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Iraqui Blues\u00e2\u20ac\u009d developing a distinctly Middle Eastern rhythmic thrust over major\/minor harmonies. Judiciously placed harmonic seconds and fast keyboard runs give spice to the trio\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s take on Jerome Kern\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s standard \u00e2\u20ac\u0153In Love In Vain,\u00e2\u20ac\u009d wrapping up one of Magris\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s finest albums. Hearing him with Uhlir and Helesic constitutes a bonus.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Joshua Redman<\/strong> and three others, Still Dreaming<\/a><\/em> (Nonesuch)<\/p>\n

The title evokes Old And New Dreams, the group that tenor saxophonist Joshua Redman\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s\"\"<\/a>
\nfather”\u00a0Dewey formed in the 1970s to follow the precepts of avant garde pioneer Ornette Coleman. Redman, cornetist Ron Miles, bassist Scott Colley and drummer Brian Blade hew to Coleman\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s principles\u00e2\u20ac\u201dor non-principles\u00e2\u20ac\u201dof freedom from conventional jazz rules. They do it faithfully, with satisfying creativity that Coleman would no doubt have smiled upon. However, to quote the title of one of Redman\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s pieces, \u00e2\u20ac\u0153It\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s Not The Same\u00e2\u20ac\u009d because these are four individualists with their own visions and if they have observed the Coleman spirit, they have done i taking into account all that has happened in music since Coleman\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s ascendancy six decades ago. Most important, they sound as if they\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re having a great time. Listening to them the third time through the CD, so is this listener.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Louis Armstrong<\/strong>, Pops Is Tops<\/a><\/em> (Verve)<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>This four-CD set is subtitled, The Verve Studio Albums<\/em>. You can take that designation literally\u00e2\u20ac\u201dand then some. With alternate takes, breakdowns, false starts and rehearsals, the set totals 71 tracks. Just imagine, as one example, six runs at \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Willow Weep For Me\u00e2\u20ac\u009d before you reach Armstrong\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s majestic master take of that great Ann Ronnell song. The Armstrong LPs of this music were I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ve Got The World On A String<\/em>, Louis Under The Stars<\/em>, Louis Armstrong Meets Oscar Peterson<\/em> and A Day With Satchmo<\/em>. If you have held onto the LPs all these years and enjoyed them, congratulations on your farsightedness and taste. If you are a newcomer to this great man\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s art, the Verve set is a marvelous way to get to know him. Then you can work your way back to his days with King Oliver, his Hot Fives and Hot Sevens from the late 1920s, his incomparable 1932 \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Stardust\u00e2\u20ac\u009d and all the rest up to and beyond “Hello, Dolly.” For now, I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122m going to listen for the sixth time in a row to Pops singing and playing the Gershwins\u00e2\u20ac\u2122 \u00e2\u20ac\u0153I Was Doing All Right\u00e2\u20ac\u009d with Oscar Peterson\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s trio and drummer Louis Bellson. Armstrong\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s trumpet introduction won\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t let me put the album away.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Fred Hersch Trio, Heartsongs (Sunnyside) Sunnyside\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s reissue of Hersch\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s 1989 sessions reminds us how impressive the pianist was in his recording debut as a leader at the age of 34. Following success as a sideman with Woody Herman, Art Farmer, Jane Ira Bloom, Stan Getz and others, Hersch\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s keyboard touch, harmonic savvy and rhythmic assurance […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":10038,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_genesis_hide_title":false,"_genesis_hide_breadcrumbs":false,"_genesis_hide_singular_image":false,"_genesis_hide_footer_widgets":false,"_genesis_custom_body_class":"","_genesis_custom_post_class":"","_genesis_layout":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-10037","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-main","8":"entry"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/rifftides\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10037","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/rifftides\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/rifftides\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/rifftides\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/rifftides\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=10037"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/rifftides\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10037\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/rifftides\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/10038"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/rifftides\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=10037"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/rifftides\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=10037"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/rifftides\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=10037"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}