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Orrin Evans and the Captain Black Big Band: Walk A Mile In My Shoe
by Steve Plever
A glance through the track list--with covers of Stevie Wonder and Marvin Gaye and two swing-era vocal standards--could give you the wrong impression. Yes, this is a very accessible and soulful album, but it is serious and heartfelt jazz, with Orrin Evans' personal stamp making it work. Blues, soul and gospel sounds share the stage here with swing, straight-ahead and avant-garde influences--no surprise given Evans' decade of playing with the Mingus Big Band. Evans' piano sets the tone ...
Continue ReadingOrrin Evans and the Captain Black Big Band: Walk A Mile In My Shoe
by Angelo Leonardi
Il nuovo disco di Orrin Evans e della sua Captain Black Big Band ci ricorda l'importanza delle radici per la comunità musicale afroamericana: il gospel, il blues, le big band, i cantanti e strumentisti storici. Una risorsa che è anche identità collettiva e forza culturale. Come ha sempre fatto in passato, il pianista e bandleader di Philadelphia s'ispira alla tradizione per rinnovarla e arricchirla, con passione e freschezza. Stavolta le orchestrazioni sono funzionali alle interpretazioni di quattro prodigiosi ...
Continue ReadingRobert Glasper: Canvas
by Chris May
Of the three dozen albums released in Blue Note's 180gm vinyl Blue Note 80 reissue series, Robert Glasper's 2005 debut, Canvas, is the only one recorded in the twenty-first century. Almost all of the other releases were recorded during Blue Note's 1950s and 1960s belle epoque. It is a singular distinction and an appropriate one, for several reasons. Top of the list is Glasper's place in jazz's piano trio lineage. Since Bill Evans elevated piano trios to ...
Continue ReadingRobert Glasper: Canvas
by Abe Pollack
Many young jazz musicians are no strangers to pop music. More familiar with Radiohead's Kid A and Public Enemy than Jerome Kern or Cole Porter, they have become increasingly more adventurous in an attempt to make jazz a commodity for the 21st Century. Unlike glossy pop covers from the '80s, Robert Glasper uses subtlety to explore late-20th Century music. This is no surprise. Having performed with Q-Tip, Bilal and Meshell Ndegeocello, Glasper finds comfort and room to ...
Continue ReadingRobert Glasper: Canvas
by Mark F. Turner
In addition to unveiling gems from the past like John Coltrane and Thelonious Monk's At Carnegie Hall, Blue Note continues to spotlight the musicians of present with recordings like Robert Glasper's Canvas. Similar to Jason Moran, Jacky Terrasson, and Bill Charlap, who also record for Blue Note, Glasper has the vision and ability to create a fresh statement within the jazz piano idiom. Following on the heels of his well received 2004 debut, Mood, this recording continues to reveal his ...
Continue ReadingRobert Glasper: Canvas
by Woodrow Wilkins
Robert Glasper Canvas Blue Note Records 2005
Wow! That's the first expression that came to mind when I heard “Rise and Shine, the opening track on Canvas. Pianist Robert Glasper's trio--including Vicente Archer on bass and Damion Reid on drums--is as tight as a unit can. This aptly named tune, sure to help many a dreary eye awaken, sizzles from start to finish. And it's just a prelude of things to come.The ...
Continue ReadingRobert Glasper: Canvas
by Paul Olson
Houston-raised, New York-based pianist Robert Glasper's Blue Note debut is only his second CD as a leader, but one would be hard pressed to find a single argument against his being ready for the big-time jazz limelight. The 67 minutes of music on Canvas are packed with richly memorable compositions, virtuosic playing, unassumingly exotic harmony and superlative group interplay. It's the most startlingly fine debut on Blue Note in quite a while.This is, for the most part, a ...
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