JOHN DIMARTINO - Passion Flower: The Music of Billy Strayhorn
Sunnyside Communications: SSC 4114
John Di Martino (piano, arrangements) Eric Alexander (tenor sax) Boris Kozlov (bass) Lewis Nash (drums) Raul Midon (vocal on `Lush Life`) Recorded July 17, 2019, Tedesco Studios.
Comparisons, they say, are odious, to which one could add, unwise and un-helpful but sometimes ,as in the case of jazz performances, inevitable as they are unavoidable. There are no `last words` in jazz but some recordings are deemed definitive, so when someone comes along with a recital of Billy Strayhorn’s music one immediately recalls Joe Henderson’s 1991 recording `Lush Life` which over the years has established a reputation as the `gold standard` amongst tributes to Duke Ellington’s celebrated acolyte.
That said, though it does’nt quite have the frisson of Henderson’s classic, Di Martino’s offering is a worthy addition to the catalogue giving a wholly acceptable account of a body of music that occupies a position of `high art` within the jazz canon. All Strayhorn’s major pieces are here including the ballad `Lush Life` which many regard as his `magnum opus`, the most vivid depiction of barfly ennui in the Great American Songbook, reputably conceived when he was only a teenager which speaks of either remarkable prescience or a miss-spent youth. It is performed here with sensitivity and empathy by singer Raul Midon who gives it a suitably world weary rendition.
This being my first encounter with the leader’s recordings I delved into his discography which reveals a prolific recording career and an enviable reputation as a `first call` session player. I was intrigued to note that he was a student of Lennie Tristano because what I’ve read of the teacher’s uncompromisingly rigid pedagogy one would have imagined a quite different outcome. In fact, Di Martino is quite unlike the other Tristano alumni in that his playing, even in up-tempo mode, has a luminously expressive quality nothing like the rather aseptic, linear style of the hermitic master. He demonstrates this aspect of his style most tellingly in his two solo piano renditions; `Lotus Blossom` and `A Flower is a Lovesome Thing` and in duet with Alexander on `Blood Count.
With every respect to the leader and bassist Kosovo, the big beasts of the session are Alexander and Lewis Nash, the former a premier league saxophonist of the present generation; a tough tenor with a tender heart, and the latter, simply one of the most accomplished percussionists to sit behind a drum kit; his wire brush technique in particular is peerless. Alexander’s fulsome tone with its steely edge is the dominant sound throughout and notwithstanding its vigour and virility, given the preponderance of balladry it would have been easy for things to become a bit becalmed if not for the pianist’s intelligent and varied arrangements. Various Latin American rhythms are applied to spice things up here and there and tunes like the normally languid `Isfahan` - for me the standout track- is given a bright makeover that suits it very well in these practised hands.
Those who delight in acoustic jazz performance of the modern mainstream variety that combines melody and stimulating invention in equal measure will find this to be a quality product which they can purchase with confidence, making a very worthwhile addition to their collection.
Reviewed by Euan Dixon
Sunnyside Communications: SSC 4114
John Di Martino (piano, arrangements) Eric Alexander (tenor sax) Boris Kozlov (bass) Lewis Nash (drums) Raul Midon (vocal on `Lush Life`) Recorded July 17, 2019, Tedesco Studios.
Comparisons, they say, are odious, to which one could add, unwise and un-helpful but sometimes ,as in the case of jazz performances, inevitable as they are unavoidable. There are no `last words` in jazz but some recordings are deemed definitive, so when someone comes along with a recital of Billy Strayhorn’s music one immediately recalls Joe Henderson’s 1991 recording `Lush Life` which over the years has established a reputation as the `gold standard` amongst tributes to Duke Ellington’s celebrated acolyte.
That said, though it does’nt quite have the frisson of Henderson’s classic, Di Martino’s offering is a worthy addition to the catalogue giving a wholly acceptable account of a body of music that occupies a position of `high art` within the jazz canon. All Strayhorn’s major pieces are here including the ballad `Lush Life` which many regard as his `magnum opus`, the most vivid depiction of barfly ennui in the Great American Songbook, reputably conceived when he was only a teenager which speaks of either remarkable prescience or a miss-spent youth. It is performed here with sensitivity and empathy by singer Raul Midon who gives it a suitably world weary rendition.
This being my first encounter with the leader’s recordings I delved into his discography which reveals a prolific recording career and an enviable reputation as a `first call` session player. I was intrigued to note that he was a student of Lennie Tristano because what I’ve read of the teacher’s uncompromisingly rigid pedagogy one would have imagined a quite different outcome. In fact, Di Martino is quite unlike the other Tristano alumni in that his playing, even in up-tempo mode, has a luminously expressive quality nothing like the rather aseptic, linear style of the hermitic master. He demonstrates this aspect of his style most tellingly in his two solo piano renditions; `Lotus Blossom` and `A Flower is a Lovesome Thing` and in duet with Alexander on `Blood Count.
With every respect to the leader and bassist Kosovo, the big beasts of the session are Alexander and Lewis Nash, the former a premier league saxophonist of the present generation; a tough tenor with a tender heart, and the latter, simply one of the most accomplished percussionists to sit behind a drum kit; his wire brush technique in particular is peerless. Alexander’s fulsome tone with its steely edge is the dominant sound throughout and notwithstanding its vigour and virility, given the preponderance of balladry it would have been easy for things to become a bit becalmed if not for the pianist’s intelligent and varied arrangements. Various Latin American rhythms are applied to spice things up here and there and tunes like the normally languid `Isfahan` - for me the standout track- is given a bright makeover that suits it very well in these practised hands.
Those who delight in acoustic jazz performance of the modern mainstream variety that combines melody and stimulating invention in equal measure will find this to be a quality product which they can purchase with confidence, making a very worthwhile addition to their collection.
Reviewed by Euan Dixon
