Pick of the Week: Coleman Hawkins
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How smooth is The Hawk? You might say as smooth as Tiger Woods or Michael Jordan and just as classy, too.
By many accounts, Hawk put the "S" in jazz sax. Vintage is the word that comes to mind. This album has the sine qua non that Duke Ellington identified — swing.
In no time flat, this crew gets the listener hooked on their infectious mood, which is augmented by the seemingly effortless, relaxed phrasing endemic in the sound of Hawk's tenor sax. The same hold true for J.J. Johnson on trombone and for Idrees Sulieman on trumpet. The licks, snippets of melody if you will, hang together across bar lines. When players as skillful as these improvise, they create songs within the song that seem as intuitive as they are inventive.
"Chant," the opening piece, penned by Hank Jones, the pianist on the album, features a tight, unison melody line for all three horns. Solos are traded, as is customary in this genre, and "cute" inside jokes fly around as well. Seasoned musicians intermittently toss in a couple of measures from a totally different song if it happens to fit with the chord pattern.
On the bandstand, this will occasion smiles and knowing glances from the other players. It's cool to acknowledge them when they happen. In case it went over your head, just smile and nod when everyone else does. No chance to put one over on any of these cats. They're way too hip. They're virtuosos.
An interesting tour-de-force on trumpet happens on the second song, an original by Sulieman. He sustains a single note for three entire choruses using the technique known as rotary breathing. One chorus would have made the point. But three is mind-boggling. How do you do that? Beats me.
The balance of the instruments is pleasing and remarkable. The bass, skillfully played by Oscar Pettiford, is both fat and punchy. Every nuance and fill by the drummer, the legendary Jo Jones, is audible, even when he's using brushes as he does on several selections. He prepares accents with a flair often using his "sizzle" cymbal for crescendos of varying degrees.
| 01. |
Chant |
| 02. | Juicy Fruit |
| 03. | Think Deep |
| 04. | Laura |
| 05. | Blue Lights |
| 06. | Sancticity |
There's a nice, easy blues upcoming in "Blue Lights," which starts out with a bouncy 2-4 meter in the bass. The verse finishes with the last four measures in the customary 4-4 time. The unison horn parts are catchy, and there's a tasty guitar solo thrown in by Barry Galbraith. Just hang out and dig it.
Then take a musical journey, be it to New Orleans or wherever. "Sancticity" is sure to lift your flagging spirits. As an aside, compare the tempo at the end with the piece's opening. They're off to the races, and nobody wants to touch the brakes. It's reminiscent of the spontaneous, celebratory music played by street bands after a Southern funeral. It brings to mind works such as, "Sermonette" or "The Preacher," with like implication — perhaps the end is just the beginning.
Glad these guys paved the way.
Ron Baker is an occasional contributor iBerkshires. For more reviews, www.muzikreviews.com.
Genre: Jazz
Label: Riverside Records
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