By Walter Price
Well I’m back with a vengeance in the new year of 2000. I’ve been sick, tired, but still pushing the jazz like a mother. I looked at a lot of “best of” lists from various sources and yawn at the selections. Maybe I’m just jealous because I can’t afford a Duke Ellington: Centennial Edition. My question is why wouldn’t a 24 CD set by the Duke be the best reissue? It’s almost unfair to measure that set with any other single or double CD set around.
Again, like last year I didn’t buy every CD that came out, probably just a small portion so you have to keep a perspective when you look at my comments. Also the CDs I buy I listen to at least three times in different settings. I would love to have some secret video camera on a jazz critic so we could actually watch what goes on in the reviewing process or the compilation of all these lists. How can they listen to so much new jazz in an honest way every year?
BEST CD OF ’99: Mark Isham’s Miles Remembered: The Silent Way Project. Miles would be pleased and Mark gets the style right without too much polishing. Look, nobody is going to recreate Bitches Brew or Dark Magus-the instruments and atmosphere was different, but Mark really captures the Miles muted sound. What a great CD-“Right Off” just kicks major butt. Listen to “Internet”-sounds like Miles made this tune himself or copied it off from someone and claimed it to have been his. The guitar riffs by Peter Maunu and Steve Cardenas will have you breaking the windows in your auto. “Spanish Key” is too funky to comment on. Just forget all those lame lists with Dave Douglas, Avishai Cohen, etc. and buy something exciting for once in jazz.
JUST AS GOOD IN ’99: Citizen Tain by Jeff “Tain” Watts. With a cut called “The Impaler”, how could anybody go wrong. Plus Tain is just a natural with the drums, hitting hard like Elvin on some cuts, but rolling like Tony W. in the background just enough for you to tune into what he is doing while the others are playing.
Bobby Hucherson’s Skyline. Never over-powering but just nice and cool like you’re almost in a small club with this legend. “Chan’s Song” always melts my soul anyway, particularly done by Bobby-just makes you nostalgic for Dexter. Jazz like this, makes you sentimental and proud to know someone like the “Hutch” through his music.
THE DREADED SMOOTH AWARD: Rachel Z’s Love is the Power mainly because the cut “Walking on Water” just works with Najee blowing everybody’s favorite instrument-the soprano sax. Somebody please tell these female jazz artists that they don’t have to always pose on their covers to look like their on a late night 1:00am R-rated show on cable called “Sax for You” starring Rachel Z. as “Mint”-the sexy keyboardist who knows how to stroke the keys!
THE CRITICS WERE RIGHT: Vertu does suck! I hate to admit to this because I love Lenny and Stanley. Lenny White’s Edge is much better. Here is the problem, Stanley and all the members of Vertu were talking about getting back to the early 70s fusion, while experimenting and integrating that fusion with the contemporary sounds. I think many us were expecting something bold and raw like fusion, instead of soft rock smooth vanilla jazz that goes no where. The hype was better than the CD unfortunately. I’ve listened to this CD several times and it just never explodes or expands into anything remotely close to move you after the cut “V-Wave” which in the middle of the tune begins to plod!
DISAPPOINTMENTS: McCoy Tyner and the Latin All Stars. Where was the Latin music and where was McCoy.
Russell Gunn’s Ethnomusciology –great instrumentals, terrible hip-hop flavored jazz cuts. Santana’s Supernatural mixes in the right amount of rap and hip hop and it doesn’t seem like it was added or “frosted” the tunes. I wish jazz artists would take notice-don’t copy, but realize you can’t just throw in some samples, rap lyrics, and some beats over any jazz tune to be hip.
