RALPH LALAMA - Staycation (a family affair)
Steeplechase Records: SCCD 31925
Ralph Lalama (tenor sax) Joe Magnarelli (trumpet) Akiko Tsuruga (Hammond B3) Clifford Barbaro (drums) with Nicole Pasternak Lalama (vocals) Recorded February 2021
Being denied the opportunity for free association afforded by club gigs and touring schedules, tenorist Ralph Lalama decided to create an artistic bubble of family and close friends to get around the forced inactivity imposed by the pandemic lockdown and make his recording debut for Steeplechase. The family members include his wife, vocalist Nicole Pasternak, younger brother Dave, a pianist and composer who doesn’t actually appear in this session but contributes a trio of up-beat tunes. Alongside Mr and Mrs Lalama is another husband and wife duo, trumpeter Magnarelli and his partner Akiko Tsuruga, with close friend Barbaro completing the line- up of what turns out to be a very tight knit combo forged by a professional relationship of many years, within the celebrated Vanguard Jazz Orchestra.
Together, they create a group sound which harks back to the classic Blue Note tenor/organ era but thanks to the quite singular contribution of Tsuruga, whose mellow harmonies take some of the fire out of the front line assertiveness, there is an all pervading velvet lined virility that makes for a very pleasing variation on the familiar hard -bop precedent. I would commend her playing to all those who profess to dislike the sound of the Hammond B3.
Lalama, a time served big band tenor-man, who apart from his Vanguard dues has graced recordings of Joe Lovano’s nonet with distinction can tough it out with the best of them but is also capable of turning on a breathy charm as in his ballad solo `Deep in a Dream`. Elsewhere his bold self-assured assertions sit nicely alongside Magnarelli’s bright, crisp lines of hard-bop reasoning.
As well as the previously mentioned pieces by brother Dave – all of which feature tricky rhythmic underpinnings ably executed by Barbaro – the leader pitches in with two of his own; the modal title track and an easy swinging `Thaditude`, dedicated to Thad Jones with whom Lalama worked in the 1970’s; a number which brings out some of his toughest playing of the set.
The remaining numbers feature the vocal talents of Mrs Lalama, recording for the first time as a guest on one of her husband’s recording. She sings two of her own tunes, one of which is based on Stanley Turrentine’s `Sugar` and contributes to the jam session like workout on the standard, `The Lamp is Low` which concludes the album. Her voice has that worldly wise hipster quality we associate with night club singers like Bob Dorough, albeit with more lyrical appeal, and makes for a pleasant diversion from the harder nosed fare on offer, leading one to hope that, to misquote a familiar saying, the `family that plays together, stays together` and that another trip to recording studio may be forthcoming in the near future.
Reviewed by Euan Dixon
Steeplechase Records: SCCD 31925
Ralph Lalama (tenor sax) Joe Magnarelli (trumpet) Akiko Tsuruga (Hammond B3) Clifford Barbaro (drums) with Nicole Pasternak Lalama (vocals) Recorded February 2021
Being denied the opportunity for free association afforded by club gigs and touring schedules, tenorist Ralph Lalama decided to create an artistic bubble of family and close friends to get around the forced inactivity imposed by the pandemic lockdown and make his recording debut for Steeplechase. The family members include his wife, vocalist Nicole Pasternak, younger brother Dave, a pianist and composer who doesn’t actually appear in this session but contributes a trio of up-beat tunes. Alongside Mr and Mrs Lalama is another husband and wife duo, trumpeter Magnarelli and his partner Akiko Tsuruga, with close friend Barbaro completing the line- up of what turns out to be a very tight knit combo forged by a professional relationship of many years, within the celebrated Vanguard Jazz Orchestra.
Together, they create a group sound which harks back to the classic Blue Note tenor/organ era but thanks to the quite singular contribution of Tsuruga, whose mellow harmonies take some of the fire out of the front line assertiveness, there is an all pervading velvet lined virility that makes for a very pleasing variation on the familiar hard -bop precedent. I would commend her playing to all those who profess to dislike the sound of the Hammond B3.
Lalama, a time served big band tenor-man, who apart from his Vanguard dues has graced recordings of Joe Lovano’s nonet with distinction can tough it out with the best of them but is also capable of turning on a breathy charm as in his ballad solo `Deep in a Dream`. Elsewhere his bold self-assured assertions sit nicely alongside Magnarelli’s bright, crisp lines of hard-bop reasoning.
As well as the previously mentioned pieces by brother Dave – all of which feature tricky rhythmic underpinnings ably executed by Barbaro – the leader pitches in with two of his own; the modal title track and an easy swinging `Thaditude`, dedicated to Thad Jones with whom Lalama worked in the 1970’s; a number which brings out some of his toughest playing of the set.
The remaining numbers feature the vocal talents of Mrs Lalama, recording for the first time as a guest on one of her husband’s recording. She sings two of her own tunes, one of which is based on Stanley Turrentine’s `Sugar` and contributes to the jam session like workout on the standard, `The Lamp is Low` which concludes the album. Her voice has that worldly wise hipster quality we associate with night club singers like Bob Dorough, albeit with more lyrical appeal, and makes for a pleasant diversion from the harder nosed fare on offer, leading one to hope that, to misquote a familiar saying, the `family that plays together, stays together` and that another trip to recording studio may be forthcoming in the near future.
Reviewed by Euan Dixon
