Home » Jazz Articles » Album Review » Gerry Hemingway: The Whimbler
Gerry Hemingway: The Whimbler
This new quartet replaces original voices with, well, more original voices. The distinctive sounds of each musician make The Whimbler an animated session. Ellery Eskelin has developed a cult following through his Hatology recordings with Jim Black and Andrea Parkins. Trumpeter Robertson keeps his free playing close to his funny bone, always playing with a light touch in bands led by artists from Tim Berne to Satoko Fujii.
Bassist Helias shared the duty with Hemingway (along with Ray Anderson) for many years in Bass-Drum-Bone. Here he plays both acoustic and electric bass. When he plugs in, the mood shifts toward pulsed power, as on the funky title track. Helias' bass throbs waves over Eskelin and Robertson's free flights.
The eleven-minute "Curlycue walks a bit more of an intimate path, the band checking harmonies and twisting the melody around an amicable resolution. All the tracks on The Whimbler were written by Hemingway, a former Anthony Braxton sideman. He keeps things grooving throughout. The airy "Kimkwella has the feel of Mardi Gras, and the bop-bop of "Rallier gets into a heavy "Night Train beat.
Fans of Hemingway's Devil's Paradise will find much to celebrate here.
Visit Gerry Hemingway on the web.
Track Listing
Waitin; Rallier; The Current Underneath; Pumbum; The Whimbler; Spektiv; Curlycue; In the Distance; Kimkwella.
Personnel
Gerry Hemingway
drumsGerry Hemingway: drums; Herb Roberston: trumpet; Ellery Eskelen: tenor saxophone; Mark Helias: acoustic & electric bass. Recorded March 2 and June 17, 2004, Brooklyn, NY.
Album information
Title: The Whimbler | Year Released: 2005 | Record Label: Clean Feed Records
< Previous
Channel Three
Next >
The Big Band Project
Comments
Tags
For the Love of Jazz
All About Jazz has been a pillar of jazz since 1995, championing it as an art form and, more importantly, supporting the musicians who create it. Our enduring commitment has made "AAJ" one of the most culturally important websites of its kind, read by hundreds of thousands of fans, musicians and industry figures every month.
You Can Help
To expand our coverage even further and develop new means to foster jazz discovery and connectivity we need your help. You can become a sustaining member for a modest $20 and in return, we'll immediately hide those pesky ads plus provide access to future articles for a full year. This winning combination will vastly improve your AAJ experience and allow us to vigorously build on the pioneering work we first started in 1995. So enjoy an ad-free AAJ experience and help us remain a positive beacon for jazz by making a donation today.
Giveaway
Days remaining: 11
