Jazz Articles about Gerald Cleaver

Gerald Cleaver - William Parker - Craig Taborn: Farmers by Nature

by AAJ Italy Staff
July 27, 2009

Musica libera, ricca di fremiti e colta dal vivo all'interno del piccolissimo Stone, il locale di New York dove si è tenuto questo concerto, il 19 giugno 2008. Il tratto saliente del disco è un senso del tempo e del ritmo che pervade ogni secondo di musica, che segna ovviamente anche la percussività tellurica e sottotraccia con cui si apre la registrazione. Contrabbasso, batteria e pianoforte si concretizzano dal silenzio più assoluto attraverso un fluire minuto ma montante, energetico e ...

Gerald Cleaver / William Parker / Craig Taborn: Farmers by Nature

by Ian Patterson
June 15, 2009

Truly improvised music is, like the depths of the great oceans, a place where few have really ventured, and it remains a largely unexplored world. On Farmers by Nature pianist Craig Taborn, drummer Gerald Cleaver and bassist William Parker are like cartographers of the unknown, diving deep into the world of improvised music. Guided by each others' rhythms, their ear is their compass, plotting a course through unfamiliar soundscapes which can be both intimidating and awe-inspiring.

So tentatively does the ...

Gerald Cleaver: Farmers By Nature and Live at the Loft

by Sean Patrick Fitzell
April 4, 2009

Gerald Cleaver / William Parker / Craig Taborn Farmers by Nature Aum Fidelity Records 2009 Lotte Anker / Craig Taborn / Gerald Cleaver Live at the Loft Ilk Music 2008

Eschewing histrionic displays, drummer Gerald Cleaver uses the subtlest motions--bare hands on the drum heads, scraped cymbal edges and judicious pauses--as ...

Gerald Cleaver / William Parker / Craig Taborn: Farmers By Nature

by John Sharpe
February 16, 2009

While Farmers By Nature is the debut of the year-old trio featuring Detroit-born drummer Gerald Cleaver, New York City bassist extraordinaire William Parker, and in-demand keyboardist Craig Taborn, it is by no means its first performance as a unit. Together the trio has fuelled the flights of saxophonists Rob Brown on his acclaimed Crown Trunk Root Funk (Aum Fidelity, 2008), and Roscoe Mitchell as part of his Note Factory ensemble as well as violist Mat Maneri's small group on Sustain ...

Gerald Cleaver / William Parker / Craig Taborn: Farmers By Nature

by Mark Corroto
February 14, 2009

The aptly named Farmers By Nature is a completely improvised live date that whispers “wait for it, wait... now, there it is." Just like farming, the seeds of improvised sound are scattered; some lay fallow and others bear delicious fruit.

Bassist William Parker, drummer Gerald Cleaver and pianist Craig Taborn have worked together in numerous groups and countless styles from large ensembles to solo outings and from free jazz to hard bop. They were last heard on disc ...

Gerald Cleaver / William Parker / Craig Taborn: Farmers By Nature

by Mark F. Turner
February 7, 2009

Farmers By Nature is the perfect outlet for these three highly respected progressives: drummer Gerald Cleaver, bassist William Parker and pianist Craig Taborn. Their herculean abilities have been witnessed on their recordings as leaders--Cleaver's Detroit (Fresh Sound New Talent, 2008), Parker's Petit Oiseau (AUM Fidelity, 2008) and Taborn's Junk Magic (Thirsty Ear, 2004)--and on collaborations with seminal artists including Tim Berne, Roscoe Mitchell, Matthew Shipp and David Torn. Cleaver's brilliant idea to create their own collective came to fruition when ...

Gerald Cleaver: Detroit

by Tom Greenland
May 3, 2008

Detroit, Gerald Cleaver's sophomore release and a tone portrait of the Motor City, further establishes the drummer, best known as a prolific and versatile sideman, as a leader and composer in his own right. A brief photo essay in the liner notes displaying dilapidated buildings and skid-row denizens strikes a melancholy tone, but the music is anything but.

Cleaver's tunes are vigorous and compelling: “The Silly One" has through-composed accents that lend it effortless forward motion; “Henry" has slow moving ...