MICHAEL OLATUJA - Lagos Pepper Soup
Whirlwind recordings: WR4754
Michael Olatuja: electric bass, synth bass, percussion; Robert Mitchell, Aaron Parks: piano; Etienne Stadwijk: keyboards; Terreon Gully: drums; Troy Miller; drums; Magatta Sow: percussion; Jason Michael Webb; piano, organ; Lionel Louke, Femi Temowo, Herve Sambe, Michael Aarons: guitar; Angelique Kidjo, Dianne Reeves, Laura Mvula, Becca Stevens, Onaje Jefferson, Camille Thurman, Thana Alexa,: vocals; Joe Lovano: sax; Samir Zarif: tenor saxophone, soprano saxophone; Brandee Younger: harp; Gregoire Maret: harmonica; Ayana George, Cassondra James, Rasul A-Salaam: backing vocals.
String Orchestra: Hiroko Taguchi, Whitney Lagrange, Kiku Enomoto, Rachel Handman: violin 1; Max Moston, Jon Webber, Katie Kresek: violin 2; Todd Low, Jocelin Pan: viola; Adele Stein, Allison Seidner: cello; Dustyn Richardson, Aaron Heick: reeds; Rachel Drehman, Aaron Korn: French Horn
Recorded 19th and 20th August 2015 by Andy Taub at Brooklyn Recordings; February 17th 2017 by Ted Tuthill at Sear Sound, Manhattanl 8th October 2018 by Aaron Nevezie at Bunker Studios, Brooklyn; 6th December 2016 and 1st March 2019 by Dave Darlington at Bass Hit, Manhattan; 15th August, 2018 and 19th September 2019 by Michael Olatuja at Olatuja Music, Brooklyn; 3rd January 2019 by Antonio Feola at Fish Factory Studios, London
A quick glance through the artists who appear on this collection will convince you that, even if you haven’t been following the career of Michael Olatuja since his debut in 2009, there are many performers in the jazz world who have been queuing up to work with him. It is startling to think that this is only his third album as a leader. Reflecting Olatuja’s childhood in Nigeria, teens in London’s burgeoning jazz scene (as a student at Middlesex University) and graduation from the Manhattan School of Music, the tunes switch between musical styles and traditions as easily as he moves between Lagos, London and New York. What first hits you on listening to these tunes is the elegance with which Olatuja plays electric bass, hitting the beat however complex the rhythm but always finding a melodic angle that draws the listeners attention to his playing. That his compositions showcase this talent without overshadowing the other players is even more exciting. Olatuja’s compostions seem particularly well suited to female vocalists (as you can see from the singers featured on this set) and to guitarists (and works particularly well with Lionel Louke). In these settings, the music has a deeply funky groove on nu-soul that is never far removed from the exuberance of various African musical styles (the 6/8 of Nigerian woro, mixed with variants from Mali, Cameroon, Senegal). On the run-out of ‘Brighter Day’, Laura Mvula shouts ‘tune!, michael’ and that could be said of each of the tracks. In addition to tunes that deliver a groove, the collection also showcases a rich palette with Joseph Joubert, David Metzger and Jason Michael Webb making extensive use of the string orchestra in their arrangements, and Brandee Younger’s harp on ‘Ma Foya’ (track 5). In addition to Olatuja’s tunes (and the collection features 7 of his plus another 3 he co-composed), there is a tune from Lionel Louke (‘Mivapola’, track 10) and Robert Mitchell, with whom Olatuja played as teenager in London (‘Home true’, track 8). Given the time spent gathering the recordings, the revolving repertoire of performers, the range of instrumentals settings and musical styles, what also strikes you is the way that Olatuja’s personality shines across all of the tunes to produce a unified whole that is as enlightening as it is uplifting.
Reviewed by Chris Baber
Whirlwind recordings: WR4754
Michael Olatuja: electric bass, synth bass, percussion; Robert Mitchell, Aaron Parks: piano; Etienne Stadwijk: keyboards; Terreon Gully: drums; Troy Miller; drums; Magatta Sow: percussion; Jason Michael Webb; piano, organ; Lionel Louke, Femi Temowo, Herve Sambe, Michael Aarons: guitar; Angelique Kidjo, Dianne Reeves, Laura Mvula, Becca Stevens, Onaje Jefferson, Camille Thurman, Thana Alexa,: vocals; Joe Lovano: sax; Samir Zarif: tenor saxophone, soprano saxophone; Brandee Younger: harp; Gregoire Maret: harmonica; Ayana George, Cassondra James, Rasul A-Salaam: backing vocals.
String Orchestra: Hiroko Taguchi, Whitney Lagrange, Kiku Enomoto, Rachel Handman: violin 1; Max Moston, Jon Webber, Katie Kresek: violin 2; Todd Low, Jocelin Pan: viola; Adele Stein, Allison Seidner: cello; Dustyn Richardson, Aaron Heick: reeds; Rachel Drehman, Aaron Korn: French Horn
Recorded 19th and 20th August 2015 by Andy Taub at Brooklyn Recordings; February 17th 2017 by Ted Tuthill at Sear Sound, Manhattanl 8th October 2018 by Aaron Nevezie at Bunker Studios, Brooklyn; 6th December 2016 and 1st March 2019 by Dave Darlington at Bass Hit, Manhattan; 15th August, 2018 and 19th September 2019 by Michael Olatuja at Olatuja Music, Brooklyn; 3rd January 2019 by Antonio Feola at Fish Factory Studios, London
A quick glance through the artists who appear on this collection will convince you that, even if you haven’t been following the career of Michael Olatuja since his debut in 2009, there are many performers in the jazz world who have been queuing up to work with him. It is startling to think that this is only his third album as a leader. Reflecting Olatuja’s childhood in Nigeria, teens in London’s burgeoning jazz scene (as a student at Middlesex University) and graduation from the Manhattan School of Music, the tunes switch between musical styles and traditions as easily as he moves between Lagos, London and New York. What first hits you on listening to these tunes is the elegance with which Olatuja plays electric bass, hitting the beat however complex the rhythm but always finding a melodic angle that draws the listeners attention to his playing. That his compositions showcase this talent without overshadowing the other players is even more exciting. Olatuja’s compostions seem particularly well suited to female vocalists (as you can see from the singers featured on this set) and to guitarists (and works particularly well with Lionel Louke). In these settings, the music has a deeply funky groove on nu-soul that is never far removed from the exuberance of various African musical styles (the 6/8 of Nigerian woro, mixed with variants from Mali, Cameroon, Senegal). On the run-out of ‘Brighter Day’, Laura Mvula shouts ‘tune!, michael’ and that could be said of each of the tracks. In addition to tunes that deliver a groove, the collection also showcases a rich palette with Joseph Joubert, David Metzger and Jason Michael Webb making extensive use of the string orchestra in their arrangements, and Brandee Younger’s harp on ‘Ma Foya’ (track 5). In addition to Olatuja’s tunes (and the collection features 7 of his plus another 3 he co-composed), there is a tune from Lionel Louke (‘Mivapola’, track 10) and Robert Mitchell, with whom Olatuja played as teenager in London (‘Home true’, track 8). Given the time spent gathering the recordings, the revolving repertoire of performers, the range of instrumentals settings and musical styles, what also strikes you is the way that Olatuja’s personality shines across all of the tunes to produce a unified whole that is as enlightening as it is uplifting.
Reviewed by Chris Baber
