ROY
NATHANSON – NEARNESS AND YOU
The famous
standard used for the title here might give some indication of the feel of the
record – as it does feature some mellower, more laidback moments – but in true
Roy Nathanson fashion, the initial performance of that song is followed by
tracks titled "The Nearness Of Ewes", "The Nearness Of
Youse", and "The Nearness Of Jews" – all improvised variations
as playful as their names! In between, Roy also contributes some of his own song
structures – which are extrapolated in duets between Nathanson and his musical
partners on the record – a lineup that includes Arturo O'Farrill on piano, Marc
Ribot on guitar, Curtis Fowlkes on trombone, Anthony Coleman on piano, Myra
Melford on piano, and Lucy Hollier on trombone. Roy himself plays alto,
soprano, baritone, and piano – and other titles include "Ludmilla's
Lament", "What Shoes", "The Low Daze", and "A
Surprisingly Pastoral Moment". ~
Dusty Groove
WILLIAM
PARKER / LOSA SOKOLOV / COOPER-MOORE – STAN’S HAT FLAPPING IN THE WIND
Really
beautiful work from bassist William Parker – a set of tracks that are every bit
as righteous as some of his other albums, but in a completely different way!
The music here is from a musical production that Parker's been creating over
the past two-decades – beautiful vocal tunes that are some of the most poetic
he's ever penned – sung here by Lisa Sokolov, alongside piano from Cooper Moore
– a stripped-down approach that really gets to the heart of the lyrics, but
never with any sort of sleepy presentation, given the vibrancy of Sokolov's
approach. One tune features an additional cello, but overall the album is just
voice and piano – Parker just acts as composer and producer – and titles
include "The Death Of Death", "Footnote To A Dream",
"For Jeanne Lee", "Poem For June Jordan", "Invocation
(for David S Ware)", "Angel's Tear", and "Soul In
Heaven". ~ Dusty Groove
HARRIS
EISENSTADT – OLD GROWN FOREST
Drummer
Harris Eisenstadt's been giving us some wonderful records in recent years – and
this well-conceived quartet session certainly continues that tradition! The
group's perfectly matched here – a very friendly lineup that includes Tony
Malaby on tenor, Jason Roebke on bass, and Jeb Bishop on trombone – players who
both have a sense of structure and freedom at once – able to come together,
spring apart, yet never lose sight of the others – nor make you feel like
they're spending too much of their attention either – an almost organic energy
that makes for incredible sounds throughout – and music that's as boldy modern
and individual as anything that Harris has given us in the past. The music also
has this toneful quality and sense of inner poetry that lives up to the
evocative title – on tracks that include "Larch", "Pine",
"Hemlock", "Big Basin", "Cedar", and
"Fir". ~ Dusty Groove
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