Buck Hill

Elliott Simon

CD/DVD Reviewer since 2001

Elliott enjoys music with energy, chops and tension; whether it be from the mainstream or the outermost fringe.

Recent articles (313 total)

Published: October 15, 2006

"RH Blues is an opener that can be best described as mellow bop played the way it should be and the title cut is an enchanting piece that, as soon as Hill opens up on tenor, makes you as comfortable as your favorite pair of slippers. The chestnut "Old Folks is presented as a leisurely portrait of senior citizenry and as Hill recalls, "Everybody does it and I do it on jobs...Don Byas did it...I remember him well...I never saw him in person but I heard him a lot. The Latin breeze of "Little Bossa , first heard on Hill's Scope (Steeplechase, 1979), is here recast and gorgeously recolored by Ozment's organ. CD closer "Sad Ones , reprised from that same release, is ample proof that the "t in Hill's tenor stands for tenderness. Hill, however, perhaps sums his sound up best when he says "That's the way I play. I am not always satisfied with it but that's me...and I have been playing professionally about 60 years.

Recommended Listening:
· Buck Hill - This Is Buck Hill (Steeplechase, 1978)

· Shirley Horn - Close Enough For Love (Verve, 1988)

· Buck Hill - Capital Hill (Muse, 1989)

· Buck Hill - Impulse (Muse, 1992)

· Buck Hill - Uh-huh! Live at Montpelier (Jazzmont, 2000)

· Buck Hill - Relax (Severn, 2005)

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