Record Reviews

A TRAVELLER`S TALE ~ J.J. EWM 680596922827 (Barcode: 680596922827) ~ NETHERLANDS ~ Smooth Jazz Recorded: 2016 Released: 2016 This is the second album by the Dutch duo A Traveller`s TaleFind albums by this artist, which consists of bassist / composer Eric van der WestenFind albums by this artist and guitarist Aron RaamsFind albums by this artist. For this album the duo was expanded to a trio with the addition of trumpeter Angelo VerploegenFind albums by this artist. Vocalist Kim HoorvegFind albums by this artist guests on a couple of tracks. The album consists of eleven tracks, all composed by van der Westen, presenting a concept suite revolving around a collection of short stories, written by van der Westen (which are included in the album´s booklet), telling a sketchy story of travels across the vast North American continent by an imaginary character called J.J., somewhat similar to Jack KerouacFind albums by this artist´s tales. The music, although including improvisation, is only very marginally connected to Jazz and is a combination of cinematic vistas and Americana / Country motifs. The melodic contents is all very well weaved, full of interesting ideas and superbly executed by the trio, as well as excellently recorded. However the music falls between genre classification and as such might unfortunately be ignored by listeners, who focus on clearly defined musical trends. It seems as if this music is primarily oriented towards the American market, both musically and conceptually, but sadly it is way to complex and sophisticated for most American listeners. Overall this is definitely an album worth investigating for open-headed listeners, who are able to put pre-conceptions aside and simply listen to the music. There is plenty of great melodic offerings and excellent playing herein, which should be able to win over those who are willing to give it a chance.

Updated: 03/07/2018Posted: 03/07/2018

CD 1 Digipak Recommend To A Friend

MICHAEL GARRICK ~ POETRY AND JAZZ IN CONCERT VOCALION 8416 (Barcode: 765387841621) ~ UK ~ Jazz & Poetry Recorded: 1964 - 1966 Released: 2006 The love affair between the two Art Forms: Jazz music & Poetry, goes back to the late 1950s, when American writers / poets of the Beat Generation (Jack KerouacFind albums by this artist, Allen GinsbergFind albums by this artist and others) discovered the “intellectual proximity” between their writing and the process of creating Jazz music, as represented by the founding Fathers of Bee Bop (Charlie ParkerFind albums by this artist, Dizzy GillespieFind albums by this artist and others). However, although the poets were frequent patrons of the burgeoning NY Jazz club scene, actual poetry readings combined with Jazz performances were pretty rare and sporadic. Only when the Jazz & Poetry concept crossed over the Atlantic to Britain (and later the rest of Europe) the movement reached a full swing and enjoyed immense popularity with the poets, musicians and the audiences. The intellectual crowds in London and the rest of Britain attended Jazz & Poetry concerts in huge numbers through the early and mid-1960s, but towards the end of the decade the enthusiasm diminished. British poet Jeremy RobsonFind albums by this artist and pianist / composer Michael GarrickFind albums by this artist were largely responsible for the movement’s popularity. Garrick, a graduate in English Literature, had a great sensitivity to the literary works and managed to compose music, which suited the words perfectly. This album, released originally in 1964 as two separate LPs (Vol.1 & 2) documents a typical Jazz & Poetry concert. Recorded “live” in a studio, the applause and the audience’s reaction to the poetry faithfully reproduce the atmosphere of a performance hall. The Jazz quintet (Garrick – piano, Joe HarriottFind albums by this artist – sax, Shake KeaneFind albums by this artist – trumpet, John TaylorFind albums by this artist – bass and Colin BarnesFind albums by this artist – drums) provides the music and four poets (Adrian MitchellFind albums by this artist, Dannie AbseFind albums by this artist, Jeremy Robson and Laurie LeeFind albums by this artist) read their poems, creating a wonderfully intellectual encounter, where the sum of the two Arts is actually better than their individual contribution. This new addition adds an ultra-rare EP of Jazz & Poetry recorded a couple of years later, featuring the Michael Garrick quintet (with Ian CarrFind albums by this artist – trumpet and Coleridge GoodeFind albums by this artist – bass replacing their respective counterparts in the earlier quintet) and Jeremy Robson, called Before Night/DayFind albums with this title. This is a timeless masterpiece and an everlasting food for sensitive souls – brilliant!

Updated: 01/01/2016Posted:

CD 2 Remastered Bonus Tracks Recommend To A Friend