JEFF COSGROVE / JOHN MEDESKI / JEFF LEDERER - History Gets Ahead Of The Story
Grizzley Music 206
Jeff Cogrove (drums); Jeff Lederer (saxophones, flute, clarinet); John Medeski (organ)
Recorded Applehead Recording Studio, NY, late 2018
Imagine someone suggesting, “Let’s make a tribute album to John Coltrane, but let’s not feature any saxophone.” Well, drummer Jeff Cosgrove’s tribute album to avant-gardist, Free Jazz bassist William Parker has no bass player. However, this move is not as strange as it first might appear, because Cosgrove’s aim is to focus on Parker’s gifts as a composer.
William Parker is a remarkable man: an accomplished bassist, improviser, composer, writer (he’s written half a dozen books) and educator. He has played with various musicians including, Cecil Taylor, Don Cherry and David S. Ware. He’s also a highly prolific recording artist, having appeared on more than 150 albums, dozens of them as leader. Although Parker tends to play live with a bass quartet line-up, he has also played with orchestras, a clarinet trio, violin trio, organ quartet, as well as voice ensembles and singers. Little wonder that his sessionography runs to almost 500 pages.
It means that Cosgrove has a vast repertoire to choose from and he has chosen to focus on Parker’s quartet compositions. Cosgrove has worked with Parker (and pianist Matthew Shipp) on two albums, the 2014 release Alternating Current and 2019’s Near Disaster. Parker has also provided Cosgrove with musical scores, but other than that, has taken a hands-off approach to the project.
Free Jazz has its fair share of critics: a cynic once said that, Free Jazz was, “The sound of a jazz band warming up at the same time.” The music has also been described as, dissonant, discordant, cacophonous and chaotic. Miles Davis famously dismissed the Free Jazz explorations of artists such as John Coltrane and Ornette Coleman, while saxophonist (and a Miles alumnus) Dave Liebman describes Free Jazz as: “For musicians-only music.” But Free Jazz music can have memorable melodies and foot tapping grooves. And Parker certainly has an ear for a good melody: witness his 2007 album, ‘I Plan To Stay A Believer: The Inside Songs of Curtis Mayfield’, a songsmith with a beautiful voice and a gift for melody.
Cosgrove says that he didn’t see the point of simply recreating Parker’s music – he was more interested in reinterpreting it. As a result, on ‘History Gets Ahead Of The Story’ (what a great title!), Cosgrove has opted for an unconventional jazz trio line-up featuring John Medeski on organ, Jeff Lederer on woodwind instruments, and himself on drums. Seven of the ten tracks are Parker compositions, with Cosgrove writing two, and Lederer, one.
The album opens with one of Parker’s best known compositions, ‘O’Neil’s Porch’. The original version is a 14-minute track featuring abrasive sax lines, rapid-fire trumpet and an extended bass solo. The trio’s version is half the length, with organ and sax playing the head. Soon after the intro, Lederer moves into some out-there playing, with his tenor sax howling and screaming, while Medeski’s organ sounds as if it fireworks are exploding from under the keys. Cosgrove’s drumming really swings and Medeski plays a lovely walking bass line on his pedals – if this track doesn’t get your head nodding, you need to check that you still have a pulse.
‘Corn Meal Dance’ (originally featuring a vocalist) is a waltz which opens with some eerie sounding chords on the organ, followed by a blitz of exclamatory lines on the sax. Lederer’s sax replaces the vocalist and he plays with much passion. ‘Gospel Flowers’ – composed by Cosgrove – is a gorgeous waltz featuring Lederer on tenor sax and Medeski tearing it up on the organ. ‘Little Bird’ is aptly named with Lederer’s delicate flute sound evoking the image of a small bird flitting around a garden.
‘Ghost ‘also lives up to its title, a funeral ballad which starts with sinister sounding chords played on the organ, some of which sound as if they emanate from the bowels of the earth. Cymbals crash and a clarinet gently weaves in and out of the track. ‘Moon’ is another swinger, with a playful-sounding riff played on soprano sax. ‘Things Fall Apart’ is a heavily improvised piece which has scurrying soprano sax lines colliding with tumbling percussion and out-there organ.
The energetic ‘Wood Flute’ Song opens with some drum fills and features more furious playing from Medeski. By contrast, ‘Purcell’s Lament' is a beautiful ballad with a sorrowful-sounding soprano sax supported by sustained organ chords and sensitive drumming – it’s a stirring performance, and one of my favourite tracks on the album. The album ends with the bluesy ‘Harlem’, with Lederer playing the melody on tenor sax and Medeski’s organ doubling up in places. It marks a sublime conclusion to an album that is a great introduction – and homage – to the many musical talents of William Parker.
Reviewed by George Cole
Grizzley Music 206
Jeff Cogrove (drums); Jeff Lederer (saxophones, flute, clarinet); John Medeski (organ)
Recorded Applehead Recording Studio, NY, late 2018
Imagine someone suggesting, “Let’s make a tribute album to John Coltrane, but let’s not feature any saxophone.” Well, drummer Jeff Cosgrove’s tribute album to avant-gardist, Free Jazz bassist William Parker has no bass player. However, this move is not as strange as it first might appear, because Cosgrove’s aim is to focus on Parker’s gifts as a composer.
William Parker is a remarkable man: an accomplished bassist, improviser, composer, writer (he’s written half a dozen books) and educator. He has played with various musicians including, Cecil Taylor, Don Cherry and David S. Ware. He’s also a highly prolific recording artist, having appeared on more than 150 albums, dozens of them as leader. Although Parker tends to play live with a bass quartet line-up, he has also played with orchestras, a clarinet trio, violin trio, organ quartet, as well as voice ensembles and singers. Little wonder that his sessionography runs to almost 500 pages.
It means that Cosgrove has a vast repertoire to choose from and he has chosen to focus on Parker’s quartet compositions. Cosgrove has worked with Parker (and pianist Matthew Shipp) on two albums, the 2014 release Alternating Current and 2019’s Near Disaster. Parker has also provided Cosgrove with musical scores, but other than that, has taken a hands-off approach to the project.
Free Jazz has its fair share of critics: a cynic once said that, Free Jazz was, “The sound of a jazz band warming up at the same time.” The music has also been described as, dissonant, discordant, cacophonous and chaotic. Miles Davis famously dismissed the Free Jazz explorations of artists such as John Coltrane and Ornette Coleman, while saxophonist (and a Miles alumnus) Dave Liebman describes Free Jazz as: “For musicians-only music.” But Free Jazz music can have memorable melodies and foot tapping grooves. And Parker certainly has an ear for a good melody: witness his 2007 album, ‘I Plan To Stay A Believer: The Inside Songs of Curtis Mayfield’, a songsmith with a beautiful voice and a gift for melody.
Cosgrove says that he didn’t see the point of simply recreating Parker’s music – he was more interested in reinterpreting it. As a result, on ‘History Gets Ahead Of The Story’ (what a great title!), Cosgrove has opted for an unconventional jazz trio line-up featuring John Medeski on organ, Jeff Lederer on woodwind instruments, and himself on drums. Seven of the ten tracks are Parker compositions, with Cosgrove writing two, and Lederer, one.
The album opens with one of Parker’s best known compositions, ‘O’Neil’s Porch’. The original version is a 14-minute track featuring abrasive sax lines, rapid-fire trumpet and an extended bass solo. The trio’s version is half the length, with organ and sax playing the head. Soon after the intro, Lederer moves into some out-there playing, with his tenor sax howling and screaming, while Medeski’s organ sounds as if it fireworks are exploding from under the keys. Cosgrove’s drumming really swings and Medeski plays a lovely walking bass line on his pedals – if this track doesn’t get your head nodding, you need to check that you still have a pulse.
‘Corn Meal Dance’ (originally featuring a vocalist) is a waltz which opens with some eerie sounding chords on the organ, followed by a blitz of exclamatory lines on the sax. Lederer’s sax replaces the vocalist and he plays with much passion. ‘Gospel Flowers’ – composed by Cosgrove – is a gorgeous waltz featuring Lederer on tenor sax and Medeski tearing it up on the organ. ‘Little Bird’ is aptly named with Lederer’s delicate flute sound evoking the image of a small bird flitting around a garden.
‘Ghost ‘also lives up to its title, a funeral ballad which starts with sinister sounding chords played on the organ, some of which sound as if they emanate from the bowels of the earth. Cymbals crash and a clarinet gently weaves in and out of the track. ‘Moon’ is another swinger, with a playful-sounding riff played on soprano sax. ‘Things Fall Apart’ is a heavily improvised piece which has scurrying soprano sax lines colliding with tumbling percussion and out-there organ.
The energetic ‘Wood Flute’ Song opens with some drum fills and features more furious playing from Medeski. By contrast, ‘Purcell’s Lament' is a beautiful ballad with a sorrowful-sounding soprano sax supported by sustained organ chords and sensitive drumming – it’s a stirring performance, and one of my favourite tracks on the album. The album ends with the bluesy ‘Harlem’, with Lederer playing the melody on tenor sax and Medeski’s organ doubling up in places. It marks a sublime conclusion to an album that is a great introduction – and homage – to the many musical talents of William Parker.
Reviewed by George Cole
