Blue fable
| Blue fable | ||||
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| Larry Willis' studio album | ||||
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Publication |
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| Label (s) | HighNote Records | |||
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Format (s) |
CD |
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Title (number) |
8th |
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running time |
54:28 |
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Studio (s) |
Rudy Van Gelder Studio, Englewood Cliffs, NJ |
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Blue Fable is a jazz album by pianist Larry Willis . The recordings, which were made on October 2, 2006, were released in early 2007 on HighNote Records . Blue Fable is named after a tune Willis wrote for Jackie McLean's album Jacknife in 1965 .
background
Larry Willis' second album for HighNote Records (after The Big Push (2006), with Buster Williams and Al Foster ) alternates between a trio line-up and a quintet, in which the pianist plays well-known pieces (such as Thelonious Monk's "Rhythm-A- Ning ”,“ Nardis ”by Miles Davis and the standard“ Never Let Me Go ”) and newer compositions are presented. He is accompanied by bassist Eddie Gomez and drummer Billy Drummond ; they also form the rhythm section for the four tracks with saxophonist Joe Ford and trombonist Steve Davis .
Track list
- Larry Willis: Blue Fable (HighNote HCD 7163)
- Rhythm-a-Ning ( Thelonious Monk ) - 6:30
- Insidious Behavior (Willis) - 4:56
- Nardis ( Miles Davis ) - 7:09
- Blue Fable ( Jackie McLean ) - 5:42
- Never Let Me Go ( Jay Livingston , Ray Evans ) - 7:23
- Landscape (Joe Ford) - 5:22
- Who's Kidding Who (Willis) - 8:09
- Prayer for New Orleans (Steve Davis) - 9:17
reception
Ken Dryden gave the album in Allmusic 4½ (out of five) stars and praised that part of the attractiveness of the trio selection was the flowing setting of the songs: “Thelonious Monks 'Rhythm-A-Ning' starts with a drum solo and Drummond continues to play a prominent role in the piece, while Gomez plays the second half of the piece. ”“ Nardis ”is familiar territory for the bassist, who has performed it countless times in his eleven years with pianist Bill Evans ,“ while Willis is his personal one Imprinted stamps by changing chords and creating a very moody, tense feeling. Trombonist Steve Davis and alto saxophonist Joe Ford are added for the other half of the session, with Willis' driving piano pointing the way through Jackie McLean's ' Blue Fable '. ”Willis, as well as Ford and Davis, would each have contributed an original composition to the session ; Willis' "Insidious Behavior" is an amusing blues with a playful mood. Ford's “Landscape”, on the other hand, is “a challenging post-bop vehicle that never follows the expected route,” while Davis's “Prayer for New Orleans”, created after Hurricane Katrina , “begins solemnly, then suddenly changes direction and to Mid-tempo cooker will be. ”The album, the author sums up, is very recommendable.
In the opinion of Donald Elfman, who reviewed the album in All About Jazz , the title track reflects a smart hipness that was certainly reflected in McLean's work, but also tells a lot about Larry Willis. “It's rich in a blues feeling and a sense of tradition, but it stays in the present with intelligent harmonies and skillful rhythmic interplay. Above all, it sounds like a smart jazz group that is having fun ”. The author praises the fact that the two wind players Ford and Davis, both long-time employees of Willis, never come to the fore. Instead, they listen carefully and complement the great trio. And in Elfman's view it is “a real trio.” Willis' strong, individual voice is always the focus. This can already be heard in the first few seconds when the pianist Monks interprets “Rhythm-A-Ning”.
Mike Joyce ( JazzTimes ) wrote, “It is easy to take Larry Willis' talents for granted as the seasoned pianist who has contributed to countless studio sessions over the years always seems to raise the level of the game. But Blue Fable starts with such a delightful jolt that even long-time listeners will sit up and notice. ”Unsurprisingly, it is Thelonious Monk's“ Rhythm-A-Ning ”that sparks Willis' imagination. In Ted Panken's Liner Notes , Willis is quoted as having “a very cosmic bond” with Monk, and after listening to him scurry through “Rhythm-A-Ning”, punctuating the knotty chromatics with pounding accents while he swings vibrantly. In the company of bassist Eddie Gomez and drummer Billy Drummond, this connection couldn't be more obvious. Drummond's opening salvo with his martial cadences and the complementary solos that he and later Gomez put together enliven the melody.
Individual evidence
- ^ A b Donald Elfman: Larry Willis: Blue Fable and Alter Ego. All About Jazz, October 6, 2019, accessed October 4, 2019 .
- ↑ a b Review of Ken Dryden's album at Allmusic (English). Retrieved October 3, 2019.
- ↑ Larry Willis: Blue Fable at Discogs
- ↑ Mike Joyce: Larry Willis: Blue Fable. JazzTimes, May 1, 2007, accessed October 3, 2019 .