CD Review: Jon Lundbom & Big Five Chord

CD Title: Quavers! Quavers!

Year: 2011

Record Label: Hot Cup Records

Style: Jazz Rock

Musicians: Jon Lundbom - Guitar; Jon Irabagon - Alto and Soprano Saxophones; Bryan Murray - Tenor and Balto! Saxophones; Moppa Elliot - Bass; Danny Fischer - Drums; Matt Kanelos - Keyboards.

Review: The first sounds of the opening track "On Jacation," made my body recoil like a bolt-action rifle and riveted me in my chaise longue with nail gun precision. The music's riotous brutality was Richter scale grade and I wondered out aloud: "How is it possible for a band to rock with such raw, rumbling, kinetic high octane impunity?" 

I could wax poetically about the unique melodic phrasing and structure employed in this mix of jazz, rock and improvised mayhem. I could also inveigle thoughts and images of other influential and comparable luminaries, as are Marc Ducret, Derek Bailey and John Scofield, to identify an idiosyncratic genius harboring boundary-stretching notions in his musical make up; mining the jazz-rock vein like one other, exciting, avant garde, free jazz disciple named Ornette Coleman.

Instead, I'll simply say:

HELLO AND WELCOME TO THE MUSIC OF JON LUNDBOM & BIG FIVE CHORD. 





Jon Lundbom

If the sounds of soothing cellos and shimmering violins do not reduce you to a pool of tears with some degree of regularity, then it is guaranteed that you will have trouble not liking the tracks that Jon Lundbom and his band of rockers lay down on their new CD "Quavers! Quavers!" Nothing hides the raw playing power of this group. They simply take spontaneous improvisation to a new cosmic level and then proceed to jam it hard into tonal, rhythmic overdrive. Be prepared to go far, far out, and deep!

On this second release for Hot Cup Records, Jon Lundbom has rounded up a cast of characters that shouts itself hoarse as a 'who's who' of the contemporary jazz rock syndicate: Alto saxophonist Jon Irabagon, right out of a regular gig with the phenomenal rock act Bright Eyes. Tenor saxophonist Bryan Murray another Hot Cup alumnus and leader of Bryan and the Haggards. Bassist and composer Moppa Elliot, internationally acclaimed for his double bass work and leader of The Terrorist Bebop Band (obviously a musician for all seasons). Danny Fischer is on the drummer's stool straight from latching on to two ARIA-award "Best Jazz Album" and two Bell-award "Best Contemporary Jazz Album" winners. He is also co-leader of the group Spoke. The keyboards are manned by the much traveled and versatile Matt Kanelos, a native of Chicago, graduate of Roosevelt University and leader of  The Smooth Maria.

With a line up of this caliber, a virtual collective of world summit jazz rock talent, further elaboration may appear trite, however, two tracks from Quavers! Quavers! scream out for special mention.

Track 4: "Meat Without Feet" ought to drive you into sustained, orgasmic, rhythmic fury. Danny Fischer's soul-stirring drum beat on this track has threaded its hypnotic groove from exotic Africa, across the sweltering Indian Sub-Continent, down through the carnival-crazed Caribbean and back to the rocking borough of Brooklyn; all along the way making many a native restless: Now it's Big Five Chord's turn to run the voodoo down.

Track 6: "Faith-Based Initiative" stretches, pummels and finally obliterates the boundaries of improvisational, spontaneous jazz rock. If the paroxysmic violence visited on Lundbom's guitar and Kanelos' keyboard, as they duel through primal screams and death-throe moans, is a harbinger of things to come; then faith-based vibrant followers of the band are in luck. With Quavers! Quavers! Jon Lundbom and Big Five Chord have clearly broken through the torpid jazz rock ozone into geophysical rock orbit. Nirvana then, maybe lurking somewhere in the tortured subliminal message of the next big five chords they play.

So stay tuned. 

Track Listing: On Jacation; The Bravest Little Pilot No. 2; Ears Like A Fox; Meat Without Feet; New Feats of Horsemanship; Faith-Based Initiative.

The Venezuelan Music Project (VMP)

 


The Venezuelan Music Project on stage at Yoshi's S. F. California April 17, 2011: Photo courtesy of Carolina Abolio.

Venezuelan music thoroughly embodies and expresses the diverse cultures of the country. This diversity of music genres is woven into the musical fabric through  African, Folkloric indigenous, Spanish and Caribbean influences. As a result, Venezuelan music is energetic, vibrant, emotional and deeply rhythmic.

This kaleidoscopic array of musical colors was sumptuously 'set down' at Yoshi's San Francisco Jazz Club on the evening of April 17, 2011 by Jackeline Rago leading the Venezuelan Music Project. 



The Venezuelan Music Project: Photo courtesy of Debra Zeller.

The band is centered in the San Francisco Bay Area, and for this concert the players came from several different places: Caracas and Maracaibo Venezuela; Puerto Rico; Oakland and San Francisco. But they played as a uniquely cohesive family, committed to a singular musical purpose: Joy!

The players in the band were: Jackeline Rago (cuatro, percussion, lead vocals, musical director); Anna Maria Violich & Norma Kansau (lead vocals); Jimmy Kansau, Omar Ledezma, Lali Mejia (percussion, vocals); Hector Lugo (percussion); Donna Viscuso (flute, alto sax); Sam Bevan (bass, vocals); Fernando Lezama (keyboard, vocals).

It was evident from the start of the program that the musicians in VMP were serious about their intent and confident about their abilities; they approached the stage as "one," and without preamble launched into a temblando parranda; a pulse-quickening, energetic style of music. The accompanying vocals and chants, which represent the main instruments that bring the message through the lyrics, blended magically with hypnotic drumming and a distinctive percussive overlay that captivated the sizable audience, spreading an aura of excited expectancy that dispelled lingering feelings of uncertainty about any 'newness' in the experience.

La Primavera, a tribute to the rites of Spring, was their next selection. This tune added an immediate, succulent morsel of enjoyment to the unfolding extravaganza: The dancers took over the floor. First, a lone dancer, a young woman, came under the spell of the beckoning drums and the melodic vocal harmonies, succumbing to the magic in the message that spread like warm, burgeoning Caribbean sunlight over a floral landscape; unseating other women, impelling them to invade the floor in an almost synchronized motion of sensuous, energetic, entertaining, spectacular dance that riveted me to my chair. And so it stayed, for the remainder of the night. It appeared, to me at least, that the music spoke in a profound, emotional voice to the distaff members of the audience, who in turn responded instantly, without inhibition, near cult-like. The absence of males from the dance floor was striking. 

As the evening's show progressed, VMP dug deeper in their musical roots and produced an amazing collection of authentic musical styles; Tamboreras, Parrandas, Golpes de Tambor, Calypso del Callao. At each cultural guidepost, with the melding of vocals to the mesmerizing drumming and the exotic colorings of the indigenous instruments; Venezuelan history, ancestry, and syncretic cultures once more came alive. For two hours or more that VMP performed, this musically peripatetic group guided its engaged audience into the magic and mystery of: "A warm night in the town of Choroni: Cumacos, laures, maracas, sabor, all night dancing in 'El Malecon'" to visualize; "...children playing in the streets of Caracas: Cuatro, mandolin, charrasca and the marimbula." Preserving for the future, "a message of mixture: Indian, black and white, the message of integration and acceptance." (Jackeline Rago)

Fueled by the beautiful harmonies of the vocalists; Donna Viscuso's sweet flute and saxophone; the authoritative percussion served up by Lali Mejia, Hector Lugo, Omar Ledezma; the steady, sure bass support of Sam Bevan and Jackeline Rago's elegant cautro leading the way; VMP threaded its musical way through San Millan, State of Carabobo, known for the 'Sangueo y Golpe de Tambor,' into the different towns and villages of the central coast for a taste of 'Venezuelan Sangueo,' and eventually to "El Callao", State of Bolivar, where the distinctive influence of Calypso from the island of Trinidad comes wafting across the seven-mile waterway of the Gulf of Paria that separates the two countries, imbuing its unique richness of rhythm, song and dance into that of Venezuela's; cajoling Fernando Lezama's keyboard to transform itself magically into a dulcet-toned steeldrum, adding tropical flavor and cool authenticity to Jackeline Rago's very danceable arrangement of the popular 'Mighty Sparrow' Calypso: "Jane."

All along this musical panorama, enthusiasm and spiritual energy "ping-ponged" between audience and musicians, creating a circle of uncontrolled, spontaneous joy that stamped itself as the Venezuelan Music Project's intended, indelible trademark.

VMP ended this memorable concert with a climactic display of drumming and chanting of 'Sangueo and Golpe de Tambor' from the Central Coast. I can only imagine, with the players now near a state of physical exhaustion, that this sophisticated ritual was designed to allow the errant spirits of Venezuelan folkloric culture, now intoxicated and adrift among the audience, to return safely and securely to their historic resting places...at least, for now!


Jackeline Rago: Photo courtesy of  Debra Zeller.

The impressive leader of the ensemble, Jackeline Rago, a multi-instrumentalist, composer, arranger, producer and educator deserves much credit for the concert's success. She kept the atmosphere electric and the content and coloring of the musical palette engaging and satisfying. She was clear about the history and origins of the music and remained sensitive to the non-Spanish speakers in the audience, like myself, providing English translations to enhance the enjoyment of the excursion into this culture-rich musical domain.

There is much  more that can be said about this particular evening's performance by VMP at Yoshi's S. F. But without a doubt, it must be agreed by those who were present that:  A Good Time Was Had By All!

     

CD Review: Walt Weiskopf Quartet

CD Title: WALT WEISKOPF QUARTET: Recorded Live At Koger Hall, University Of South Carolina, April 8, 2008

Year: 2011

Record Label: CAPRI Records

Style: Contemporary Jazz

Musicians: Walt Weiskopf - Tenor Saxophone; Renee Rosnes - Piano; Paul Gill - Bass; Tony Reedus - Drums.

Tenor Saxophonist
Walt Weiskopf



Review: The initial striking impressions you get of this quartet are, its 'fresh' sound, modernity and originality, due in large part to five of the eight tracks on the CD being new material composed by the leader, tenor saxophonist Walt Weiskopf.

A jazz lover who can spot, and appreciates exceptional tenor chops, will not be disappointed with Walt Weiskopf. He simply leans in, and blows. His playing style is energetic, full and crystal clear, as is exemplified on the CD's four opening tracks, "Man Of Many Colors," " Little Minor Love Song," Dizzy Spells/Jay Walking" and "Blues In The Day." On this date with Weiskopf are: Renee Rosnes - Piano; Paul Gill - Bass and Tony Reedus - Drums.

This coterie of musicians has traveled an interestingly synchronistic path; with New York City emerging as a serendipitous locus for their professional growth, maturity and career opportunities.

Now, on this April night in 2008, they arrived together at Koger Hall, University of South Carolina, to celebrate the last night of the Bi-Annual North American Saxophone Alliance Convention. Ironically, it would be the final gathering of this particular quartet: A reprise cruelly precluded by the untimely passing, just months later, of drummer Tony Reedus.

These two occurrences serve to stamp this live recording as doubly significant.

A keen listener will be awed immediately by the rhythmic strength and scintillating technique of drummer Tony Reedus. Quite candidly, he is the 'engine' that drives the band, whether it needs to accelerate deftly through "Dizzy Spells/Jay Walking," (track 3) or purr unhurriedly for the traditional "Scottish Folk Song," (track 5), Reedus' playing style is replete with reminiscences of the rolling thunder of Max Roach, the driving force of Kenny Clarke, the tone and interpretive sense of  a Jimmy Cobb.

Canada has produced another exceptional pianist out of the bright light left by Oscar Peterson, in the person of Renee Rosnes. Her keyboard solos on each of the CD's tracks sparkle with diamond-like clarity and are executed with mellifluous panache. She and Weiskopf shine brilliantly on his arrangement of "Scottish Folk Song" (track 5), in which they evoke a feeling of profound nostalgia for this mystical 'land of heroes, mysteries and spectacular scenery,' all the while maintaining a delicate musical balance between jazz idiom and folk genre.There is a palpable yearning for afternoon tea in Glasgow, at the historic Willow Tea Room on Saucaiehall Street, or a visit to beautiful Lake Loch Ness. The entire quartet fit superbly around this Scottish folk song, much to the delight of the engaged audience in attendance.

Bassist Paul Gill is steady, solid and competent almost to the point of having his immense contribution to the proceedings taken for granted; that is, until you run into "Blues In The Day" (track 4) where he displays his smooth, fluid bass lines, and a knack for coolly shadowing Reedus' burning drums.

Rosnes, Reedus and Gill comprise a formidable rhythm section that lends excitement to the dynamic elements of innovation, freedom and daring in Weiskopf's playing.

Weiskopf's interpretation of the 1956 Nat Cole hit, "Blame It On My Youth" (track 6) deserves special mention. His horn elegantly explores and elongates the pathos and melancholy suggested by the song's title, simultaneously giving expression to his own sincerely detailed sensitivities.

Cole Porter's "Love For Sale" (track 7) is a standard for which I have a particular bias, having heard, what I consider the definitive version, played by the 1956 Miles Davis Quintet. Nonetheless, I found this rendition well conceived and with enough playing space for unrestricted spontaneity by the players; and after all, that's what good jazz should be...utterly and uncompromisingly, in the moment!

Finally, comes "Breakdown" (track 8), the last track; a scorcher composed by Weiskopf... a fitting climax; and did they break it down! First the tenor states the theme, setting up Renee Rosnes' fingers as a flying blur, and she blazes through her opening solo. Weiskopf urgently circles back, quickly dispelling any notion of staidness; of playing it safe; abandoning conventional modes of attack; the horn morphing into a screaming colossus of raw power, speed and sound.Tony Reedus joined the pursuit; expanding the tension; giving no ground; daring 'hurricane' Weiskopf to blow him away; in the process, putting on a drum clinic. Ultimately, Weiskopk, Rosnes, Gill and Reedus spent themselves into an enervating, exploding, poly rhythmic unison....and then, like most wonderful happenings, it was over!

Drummer Tony Reedus

In the CD's liner notes, Walt Weiskopf commented that, originally it was recorded for "archival purposes," but on learning of Tony Reedus' untimely passing he was "inspired to go back to South Carolina to mix and master the concert, in the hope it could be released as a CD." There is no doubt the jazz community has suffered a great loss with the passing of such a stellar drummer as Tony Reedus so young in his years; but the spirit and vitality he left in this CD will be an enduring legacy for an artist described by his peers as "an unsung hero in the world of jazz."

And so, as Charlie "Yardbird" Parker was wont to say "...give this man all the stars you've got."

Track Listing: Man of Many Colors; Little Minor Love Song; Dizzy Spells/Jay Walking; Blues In The Day; Scottish Folk Song; Blame It On My Youth; Love For Sale; Breakdown.

Marcus Shelby tribute to Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

On April 4, 1968 Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.was assassinated in Memphis TN. It was a tragic day in our country's history.

Bassist/composer Marcus Shelby, whose family is from Memphis, TN, pays tribute to Dr. King on April 4, with 4 new videos featuring music from Shelby's widely acclaimed CD "Soul of the Movement: Meditation on Dr. Martin Luther King Jr."

This is a very personal project for Shelby, who had several family members in the "I Am A Man" march and several who were arrested in the struggle.. Shelby poignantly points out: "I've got two daughters and I want them to keep the story going. Getting it from my ancestors and passing it on---story telling is an African tradition and an American tradition, I feel blessed I had the opportunity to do my part."

Please visit the link below to view these powerful videos provided by this accomplished musician:

Marcus Shelby tribute to Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.