HOWARD RILEY - To Be Continued
Slam CD 293
Howard Riley: piano
Howard Riley is an improviser without peer. He has not sought publicity but he has been playing since 1956 producing work with integrity and joy. He has been part of the UK avant-garde but has gone beyond that. His importance and significance has not often been recognised or rewarded in the UK. Some of his recent work has been done in Lithuania. His playing is characterized by thoughtfulness and lyricism and a sense of adventure. Riley has always acknowledged his influences: Bud Powell and Thelonious Monk, Duke Ellington and Bill Evans. All of them have been thoroughly absorbed into what is a very personal style. On this, his most recent CD, you can hear Howard’s line of thought and follow it as the music twists and turns.
The inclusion of ‘The Folks Who Live On The Hill’ enables us to hear how he approaches and embellishes a known theme. It is as though he is saying: ‘You know this, now listen to what I can add to it and recompose.’ It is daring for a free player to play a known composition because it enables us to see the richness of his invention or the paucity of his improvisation. It is the essence of jazz, a kind of daring.
Throughout the rest of the album it is difficult to hear where the composing ends and the improvising begins. Is that important? No. Abstraction is always used to intrigue rather than to confound. The piano is well captured on this CD emphasising the resonance and Howard's playing uses it; he clearly loves the instrument.
Riley is not one of those free players who will bludgeon, dominate and compel. He trusts the listener. In ‘Two Part Invention’ it is fascinating to listen to the two lines as they interact and complement or oppose each other. You can hear his classical training here. This is what third stream music should sound like. This is piano playing at a high level.
The album is a deeply satisfying statement and is not the kind of music that reveals itself immediately; it does warrant playing over and over in order to reveal its depths. SLAM should be congratulated in ensuring that the work of this artist is captured. ‘To be continued’, let’s hope that it is.
Reviewed by Jack Kenny
Slam CD 293
Howard Riley: piano
Howard Riley is an improviser without peer. He has not sought publicity but he has been playing since 1956 producing work with integrity and joy. He has been part of the UK avant-garde but has gone beyond that. His importance and significance has not often been recognised or rewarded in the UK. Some of his recent work has been done in Lithuania. His playing is characterized by thoughtfulness and lyricism and a sense of adventure. Riley has always acknowledged his influences: Bud Powell and Thelonious Monk, Duke Ellington and Bill Evans. All of them have been thoroughly absorbed into what is a very personal style. On this, his most recent CD, you can hear Howard’s line of thought and follow it as the music twists and turns.
The inclusion of ‘The Folks Who Live On The Hill’ enables us to hear how he approaches and embellishes a known theme. It is as though he is saying: ‘You know this, now listen to what I can add to it and recompose.’ It is daring for a free player to play a known composition because it enables us to see the richness of his invention or the paucity of his improvisation. It is the essence of jazz, a kind of daring.
Throughout the rest of the album it is difficult to hear where the composing ends and the improvising begins. Is that important? No. Abstraction is always used to intrigue rather than to confound. The piano is well captured on this CD emphasising the resonance and Howard's playing uses it; he clearly loves the instrument.
Riley is not one of those free players who will bludgeon, dominate and compel. He trusts the listener. In ‘Two Part Invention’ it is fascinating to listen to the two lines as they interact and complement or oppose each other. You can hear his classical training here. This is what third stream music should sound like. This is piano playing at a high level.
The album is a deeply satisfying statement and is not the kind of music that reveals itself immediately; it does warrant playing over and over in order to reveal its depths. SLAM should be congratulated in ensuring that the work of this artist is captured. ‘To be continued’, let’s hope that it is.
Reviewed by Jack Kenny
