CORY HENRY - The Revival
Ground UP Music/Universal Records
Cory Henry (Hammond B3 Organ) James Williams (drs) Jeffrey White (vcl)
First and foremost this album is a masterclass for anyone who has an interest in one of the most iconic keyboard instruments in music; The Hammond B3 Organ. The leader here is a member of the highly successful funk orientated band Snarky Puppy. The album itself is very much gospel based and recorded in The Great Temple Of Praise in Brooklyn. The drummer and vocalist have little part to play so therefore this can almost be looked at as a solo recording. Of the eleven numbers during the seventy nine minute set only three cannot be described as music from the church.
The album opens at an almost funereal tempo with a low key interpretation of "The Lord's Prayer" for the most part, this is an organ performance of great beauty, whatever your faith or not, proving the old adage that indeed the Devil does not have all of the best music. However things do not stay in a similar mode for very long as almost all of the other non-secular tracks follow a path of restrained openings building, not always steadily, to tumultuous and thunderous conclusions. Although this shows a great command over the instrument it can leave the listener totally exhausted after just a few tracks. When Bishop James Williams joins the fray for a vocal excursion on "The Old Rugged Cross" he initially displays an excellent controlled baritone voice until egged on by the enthusiastic congregation the piece develops into ear shattering four bar exchanges with the organ long before the close.
Jazz is represented by one of the evergreen Coltrane masterpieces "Giant Steps" with a quiet, laconic and intelligent exploration by the leader making it worth the cost of the recording on it's own. The beautiful melody of Stevie Wonder's "All In Love Is Fair" is carried with great restraint with every niche probed, investigated and developed to the full. The secular trio of tunes is completed by Lennon and McCartney's "Yesterday" where the true meaning is preserved during a complete and stunning reworking over nine minutes.
There are some tremendous high's on this disk that make it a very worthwhile purchase, even if not a balanced one. Some version's come with a dvd of the concert, plus you can experience things for yourself during the forthcoming four date UK tour. (see www.cory-henry.com)
Reviewed by Jim Burlong
Ground UP Music/Universal Records
Cory Henry (Hammond B3 Organ) James Williams (drs) Jeffrey White (vcl)
First and foremost this album is a masterclass for anyone who has an interest in one of the most iconic keyboard instruments in music; The Hammond B3 Organ. The leader here is a member of the highly successful funk orientated band Snarky Puppy. The album itself is very much gospel based and recorded in The Great Temple Of Praise in Brooklyn. The drummer and vocalist have little part to play so therefore this can almost be looked at as a solo recording. Of the eleven numbers during the seventy nine minute set only three cannot be described as music from the church.
The album opens at an almost funereal tempo with a low key interpretation of "The Lord's Prayer" for the most part, this is an organ performance of great beauty, whatever your faith or not, proving the old adage that indeed the Devil does not have all of the best music. However things do not stay in a similar mode for very long as almost all of the other non-secular tracks follow a path of restrained openings building, not always steadily, to tumultuous and thunderous conclusions. Although this shows a great command over the instrument it can leave the listener totally exhausted after just a few tracks. When Bishop James Williams joins the fray for a vocal excursion on "The Old Rugged Cross" he initially displays an excellent controlled baritone voice until egged on by the enthusiastic congregation the piece develops into ear shattering four bar exchanges with the organ long before the close.
Jazz is represented by one of the evergreen Coltrane masterpieces "Giant Steps" with a quiet, laconic and intelligent exploration by the leader making it worth the cost of the recording on it's own. The beautiful melody of Stevie Wonder's "All In Love Is Fair" is carried with great restraint with every niche probed, investigated and developed to the full. The secular trio of tunes is completed by Lennon and McCartney's "Yesterday" where the true meaning is preserved during a complete and stunning reworking over nine minutes.
There are some tremendous high's on this disk that make it a very worthwhile purchase, even if not a balanced one. Some version's come with a dvd of the concert, plus you can experience things for yourself during the forthcoming four date UK tour. (see www.cory-henry.com)
Reviewed by Jim Burlong
