JAZZ ALBUM REVIEWS IN THE AUSTRALIAN
In September, 2017 Eric Myers commenced reviewing jazz albums in the Review supplement of The Weekend Australian. All reviews in this folder are written by Myers.
JAZZ
SECRETS ARE THE BEST STORIES
KURT ELLING
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Edition Records
Four-and-a-half stars
Published in the Weekend Australian, January 16, 2021
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This brilliant, difficult album will challenge the best of us. It has taken to high art what is known as “vocalese”, the craft of putting lyrics to instrumental works or recorded solos by great jazz musicians. Elling’s lyrics are poetic, mysterious and opaque. His collaborator in this ambitious project is Panamanian pianist & composer Danilo Pérez, known as a social activist. Two tracks feature works by electric bassist Jaco Pastorius and there is one each from saxophonist Wayne Shorter and composer/arranger Vince Mendoza. Otherwise much of the music is composed by Pérez, who leads an orthodox rhythm section, used sparingly. Drums (Johnathan Blake) are on two tracks only, while saxophonist Miguel Zenón plays on one track. In his 2018 album The Questions Elling encouraged his fans to be aware of social issues. This striking album, with his singing as glorious as ever, takes that process one step further.
Eric Myers
JAZZ
CONSTANT CHANGE
JAMES RYAN & THE SUBTERRANEANS
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Rippa Recordings
Four-and-a-half stars
Published in the Weekend Australian, January 30, 2021
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This album should cure anyone of a prejudice against fusion, the playing of jazz over rock rhythms, which was popular in the 70s. My own conversion is prompted by instrumental brilliance here. Led by Sydney saxophonist James Ryan, playing with the intensity of a latterday Mark Simmonds, this quintet includes the extraordinary electric bassist virtuoso Steve Hunter. Eight Ryan compositions and one by Hunter enable this happening band to move along at an exhilarating pace, with the third track Then Now featuring a blistering solo from guest Rai Thistlethwayte on electric piano. An album with much variety, it includes a mood changing Sinistra featuring Sangeet Mishra on the Indian string instrument sarangi, and You And Me, a feel-good song from the legendary Jamaican singer Pat Powell and the Marrickville Public School Choir. Guest appearances by the inimitable trombonist James Greening on two tracks increase the album’s great appeal.
Eric Myers
JAZZ
GRAND & UNION
THE ANDY SUGG GROUP
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Independent
Four stars
Published in the Weekend Australian, February 6, 2021
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This lovely album from Melbourne’s durable tenor saxophonist Andy Sugg, presenting five of his compositions, is a step up from his 2018 album Tenorness. Courtesy of a supple New York rhythm section, doing everything right, Sugg presents two high energy hip hop flavoured tunes, borrowing rhythmic ideas from Igor Stravinsky’s famous percussion-dominated 1913 piece The Rite of Spring. Ruby Mei, a slow 12/8 with lovely harmonic changes is the album’s signature tune, presented once with the quartet, and once again with keyboard accompaniment from Brett Williams, whose playing throughout gives the album real distinction. Other musicians are Alex Claffy (acoustic & electric bass) and Jonathan Barber (drums). As an instrumentalist Sugg’s unique sound on the tenor is almost wholly devoid of vibrato, enabling him to avoid the prettiness of the Stan Getz school. The result is one of the sturdiest, most masculine tenor sounds in Australian jazz.
Eric Myers