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LEO RICHARDSON QUARTET - Move
Ubuntu Music UBU026
Leo Richardson (tenor saxophone); Rick Simpson (piano); Tim Thornton (bass); Ed Richardson (drums)
Special Guest: Alex Garnett (tenor saxophone)
Recorded 14th-15th November 2018
If Richardson's debut, The Chase, was good, then this is better. A tremendous set that grabs the attention from the off with some dynamite compositions and driving, energetic playing from the quartet. Over the last couple of years the saxophonist has been honing his craft, and if the music presented here is a direct descendant of the hard bop tradition Rchardson and his men are always looking forward, and deliver their music with a straight ahead no nonsense approach that is as contemporary as anything else out there.
What is immediately is how the music has evolved between the two recordings. The quartet lay with an assurance that comes with with much time spent together on the bandstand, and equally the writing has also developed to reflect this. All the tunes are lean and muscular with no hint of a superfluous note or gesture on the entire album. The leader plays with a confidence of many hours of practice and hard work under his belt, and is not afraid to doff his hat in acknowledgement of his influences, namely Dexter Gordon, Joe Henderson and Trane, knowing that he has plenty of his own to say. This is unmistakably evident on the delightful ballad, 'E.F.G', dedicated to his wife where the saxophonist wears his heart on his sleeve in a tender and moving solo. On the uptempo pieces he exudes a calm authority that ensures he never sounds rushed or short of a good idea. In this respect he is matched by the rhythm section, who as well as providing a deeply grooving swing also excel in their individual solos.
Like all the best hard bop recordings from the fifties and sixties, Move works so well because it is a collective enterprise that is not constrained by any sense of form or idiom but inspired by it, and the possibilities yet to be discovered. Quite simply this album is top notch... it doesn't get much better than this.
Reviewed by Nick Lea
Ubuntu Music UBU026
Leo Richardson (tenor saxophone); Rick Simpson (piano); Tim Thornton (bass); Ed Richardson (drums)
Special Guest: Alex Garnett (tenor saxophone)
Recorded 14th-15th November 2018
If Richardson's debut, The Chase, was good, then this is better. A tremendous set that grabs the attention from the off with some dynamite compositions and driving, energetic playing from the quartet. Over the last couple of years the saxophonist has been honing his craft, and if the music presented here is a direct descendant of the hard bop tradition Rchardson and his men are always looking forward, and deliver their music with a straight ahead no nonsense approach that is as contemporary as anything else out there.
What is immediately is how the music has evolved between the two recordings. The quartet lay with an assurance that comes with with much time spent together on the bandstand, and equally the writing has also developed to reflect this. All the tunes are lean and muscular with no hint of a superfluous note or gesture on the entire album. The leader plays with a confidence of many hours of practice and hard work under his belt, and is not afraid to doff his hat in acknowledgement of his influences, namely Dexter Gordon, Joe Henderson and Trane, knowing that he has plenty of his own to say. This is unmistakably evident on the delightful ballad, 'E.F.G', dedicated to his wife where the saxophonist wears his heart on his sleeve in a tender and moving solo. On the uptempo pieces he exudes a calm authority that ensures he never sounds rushed or short of a good idea. In this respect he is matched by the rhythm section, who as well as providing a deeply grooving swing also excel in their individual solos.
Like all the best hard bop recordings from the fifties and sixties, Move works so well because it is a collective enterprise that is not constrained by any sense of form or idiom but inspired by it, and the possibilities yet to be discovered. Quite simply this album is top notch... it doesn't get much better than this.
Reviewed by Nick Lea
