New York's idyllic Hudson River Valley has been a rich
source of inspiration for many millennia, from its rich sacred and artistic
native American heritage, to the rise of the 19th century Hudson River School
(America's first recognizable non-native school of art) to the folk and rock
movement that led to the era-defining Woodstock Festival of 1969, to Pete
Seeger's Clearwater movement and the burgeoning locavore movement with its
craft wineries, breweries and wide spread indie arts and craft scene the area
is home to more artists per-capita than any other area in the country,
including New York City. Now, the next chapter in that remarkable history
arrives in the form of Hudson, an awe-inspiring new collective that brings
together four of the world's most influential jazz musicians who are writing a
new chapter in the marriage of jazz and rock which began with Miles Davis in
the 1970s.
On their own, drummer Jack DeJohnette, bassist Larry
Grenadier, keyboardist/organist John Medeski and guitarist John Scofield can
each boast careers that are stunning in their diversity and reach, building
impressive audiences across a wide range of genres and styles from jazz to rock
and beyond. Together they comprise the rare supergroup worthy of the name.
What's brought them together is not just their similarly adventurous and
virtuosic music, but a shared love for the scenery and spirit of the Hudson
River Valley, which all four call home.
The group's extraordinary self-titled debut, Hudson (out
June 9 via Motéma Music), strikingly captures the atmosphere and beauty of the
region while celebrating the extraordinary music that has emerged from it.
Mixing original music with thrilling renditions of world-famous songs by the
likes of Bob Dylan, Joni Mitchell, Jimi Hendrix and The Band's Robbie
Robertson, Hudson has created an album as spectacular and breathtaking as the
Hudson Valley itself.
The prolific foursome first came together in 2014 at the
Woodstock Jazz Festival. The collective immediately recognized their
electrifying chemistry and agreed that the project needed to continue. Not that
most were strangers to one another: DeJohnette and Scofield first played together
nearly four decades ago and have since combined forces in their co-led Trio
Beyond as well as in Herbie Hancock's ground breaking New Standards ensemble.
Guitar-master Scofield, equally adept at soulful jazz and R&B has recorded
four albums with Medeski Martin & Wood, the trio known for melding the jazz
and jam band worlds, while Grenadier has played with all three in different
contexts. Adding to the fun, they spend this year celebrating the 75th birthday
of NEA Jazz Master and GRAMMY®-winner DeJohnette.
Just a two hour drive but a world away, the Hudson Valley
has long provided a retreat for those looking to maintain a lifeline to
Manhattan's vibrant metropolis but a lifestyle apart from its frenetic pace,
its combination of scenic splendor and easy access to the city's cultural hub
making it an ideal source of respite and inspiration for artists. "All of
us built our careers in the city and then moved out to the Hudson Valley to
raise our kids and have a home," Scofield says, who is coming off
consecutive GRAMMY® Award wins in 2016 and 17. "One thing that we all have
in common is that although we're urban musicians, we left the city to live in
nature."
DeJohnette moved to the Valley in the early '70s, enticed by
members of the Paul Butterfield Blues Band, who pulled up stakes not long after
while DeJohnette stayed. Relative newcomers Medeski and Grenadier both made the
move in the early 2000s. "A lot of creative energy was going on up here at
that time," DeJohnette says of his early days. "I got a chance to get
to know all the members of The Band and was a big fan of their music. Their
tunes take me back to when I was a kid coming up in Chicago and listening to
all kinds of music. There's a lot of cultural history in that music."
"This area has been a place for musicians to come to
retreat," Medeski says. "There's performing, but there's also writing
and practicing and growing and going deeper. Traditionally people have come to
this environment to search and grow. To woodshed."
Grenadier concurs with the idea of the valley as a place not
to play so much as to recharge and absorb the lessons learned on stages
elsewhere. "People seem to come up here to have some quiet and soak up
everything that they've taken in from living in the city and touring," he
says. "The atmosphere that Jack described in the '70s still exists, in
that there's a real cultural awareness and creative energy that exists in all
aspects of life around here, so I think it attracts the artistic spirit."
Hudson conjures that spirit in a variety of stirring ways,
from the blues-reggae feel of Dylan's "Lay Lady Lay" to the
meditative vibe of Mitchell's "Woodstock" to the New Orleans swing of
The Band's "Up On Cripple Creek." Hudson's originals cover territory
including the electric abstract organic funk of their collectively improvised
namesake track, the simmering, Latin-accented groove of Sco's "El
Swing," and the defiant "Dirty Ground," featuring DeJohnette's
moving, earthy vocals. The closer, "Great Spirit Peace Chant," pays
tribute to the Native American tribes that were the first to settle the area,
with the whole band joining in with chants, percussion and wood flutes.
The album was recorded, at Scott Petito's NRS Recording
Studios, nestled between the Catskill Mountains and the Hudson River and
sharing the welcoming feel of the valley's homes. "Being up here in the
mountains where you have some peace and tranquility, in a small, intimate room,
the spiritual bond was definitely there," DeJohnette says. "We didn't
feel stressed about recording. It was relaxed, so the music comes out that way.
It has spirit and intensity and presence, but it also has a calm as well."
Pastoral yet exhilarating, gorgeous yet thrilling, historic
yet intimate, serene yet inspiring: these are the elements that make the Hudson
Valley an ideal destination and Hudson a landmark recording.
Hudson Tour Dates
June 8 - San Francisco Jazz Festival, San Francisco, CA
June 9 - Lobero Theatre, Santa Barbara, CA
June 10 - Playboy Jazz Festival, Los Angeles, CA
June 11 - Chautauqua Park, Boulder, Colorado
June 18 - Pittsburgh International Jazz Festival,
Pittsburgh, PA
June 24 - Ottawa Jazz Festival, Ottawa, ON
June 25 - Saratoga Jazz Festival, Saratoga, NY
June 29 - Toronto Jazz Festival, Toronto, ON
June 30 - Montreal Jazz Festival, Montreal, QC
August 6 - Newport Jazz Festival, Newport, RI
October 4 - Bardavon 1869 Opera House, Poughkeepsie, NY
October 6-7 - Rose Theater @ Jazz at Lincoln Center, New
York, NY
October 8 - Berklee Performing Arts Center, Boston, MA
October 14 - Sheldon Arts Center, St. Louis, MO
October 15 - Yardley Hall, Overland Park, KS
October 17 - Jack Singer Concert Hall, Calgary, AB
October 18 - Chan Centre For The Performing Arts, Vancouver,
BC
October 19 - Moore Theater, Seattle, WA
October 21 - Mondavi Center, Davis, CA
October 22 - The Green Music Center, Rohnert Park, CA
October 23 - Newmark Theater, Portland, OR
October 25 - Piper Theatre, Mesa, AZ
October 26 - Lensic Performing Arts Center, Santa Fe, NM
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