JOHN McKENNA QUARTET - Portraits
Ear Up Records EUR0434
John McKenna (tenor saxophone); Bruce Barth (piano); Anthony Santor (bass); Victor Lewis (drums)
Recorded Sear Sound, NYC, 6 June 2017
Tenor saxophonist John McKenna has toured with Joe Lovano and recorded with Larry Golding, so clearly has the chops when it comes to playing the sax. Portraits is a highly personal album, being inspired by people he loves (including parents, family members and a dear friend who passed away). There are nine tunes, all composed by McKenna and covering a variety of styles.
The album opens on a mellow note with ‘Erin Christine’ (named after McKenna’s wife), a near ten-minute bossa nova, with silky sax lines and light, delicate piano playing from Bruce Barth. ‘Labyrinth’ crackles and sizzles and was, says McKenna, inspired by a maze-like form. It certainly offers many musical twists and turns, and it also seems to have been inspired by the playing of John Coltrane and McCoy Tyner (no bad thing). Barth delivers a flowing piano solo, Victor Lewis’s energetic drumming really drives the track, and McKenna unleashes plenty of punchy sax.
The elegiac ‘Song For Paul’ is a ballad dedicated to McKenna’s friend, the jazz pianist Paul Tillotson, who died of cancer in 2016. Opening with some minor chords on piano, McKenna’s tender playing evokes both sadness and happy memories of a long lost friend – it’s a very moving number. If you want to hear some swing, then the vibrant ‘Hangar 45’ has lots of it, while ‘Rascal’, a tune in 7/4 and written for McKenna’s son, has indeed an impish quality to the sound. ‘Night Runner’ is a driving track with Victor Lewis’s metronome-like rimshots propelling the music. ‘Quest,’ a jazz-waltz with a lovely melody, evokes a feeling of serenity with this listener. ‘Aluminium’ is an improvised number, with a middle section that sounds almost avant garde, It also highlights some fine bass playing from Anthony Santor. The album ends with ‘Ghost’ a dramatic number with cymbal crashes and wailing sax lines that suggest the transitory nature of life. This is a splendid album and well worth checking out by jazz saxophone enthusiasts.
Reviewed by George Cole
Ear Up Records EUR0434
John McKenna (tenor saxophone); Bruce Barth (piano); Anthony Santor (bass); Victor Lewis (drums)
Recorded Sear Sound, NYC, 6 June 2017
Tenor saxophonist John McKenna has toured with Joe Lovano and recorded with Larry Golding, so clearly has the chops when it comes to playing the sax. Portraits is a highly personal album, being inspired by people he loves (including parents, family members and a dear friend who passed away). There are nine tunes, all composed by McKenna and covering a variety of styles.
The album opens on a mellow note with ‘Erin Christine’ (named after McKenna’s wife), a near ten-minute bossa nova, with silky sax lines and light, delicate piano playing from Bruce Barth. ‘Labyrinth’ crackles and sizzles and was, says McKenna, inspired by a maze-like form. It certainly offers many musical twists and turns, and it also seems to have been inspired by the playing of John Coltrane and McCoy Tyner (no bad thing). Barth delivers a flowing piano solo, Victor Lewis’s energetic drumming really drives the track, and McKenna unleashes plenty of punchy sax.
The elegiac ‘Song For Paul’ is a ballad dedicated to McKenna’s friend, the jazz pianist Paul Tillotson, who died of cancer in 2016. Opening with some minor chords on piano, McKenna’s tender playing evokes both sadness and happy memories of a long lost friend – it’s a very moving number. If you want to hear some swing, then the vibrant ‘Hangar 45’ has lots of it, while ‘Rascal’, a tune in 7/4 and written for McKenna’s son, has indeed an impish quality to the sound. ‘Night Runner’ is a driving track with Victor Lewis’s metronome-like rimshots propelling the music. ‘Quest,’ a jazz-waltz with a lovely melody, evokes a feeling of serenity with this listener. ‘Aluminium’ is an improvised number, with a middle section that sounds almost avant garde, It also highlights some fine bass playing from Anthony Santor. The album ends with ‘Ghost’ a dramatic number with cymbal crashes and wailing sax lines that suggest the transitory nature of life. This is a splendid album and well worth checking out by jazz saxophone enthusiasts.
Reviewed by George Cole
