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Ray Bryant: Alone At Montreux
by Jim Santella
A little more than a year ago, Jack Nicholson and Helen Hunt won Academy Awards for their roles in the film As Good As It Gets. In one memorable scene, Nicholson turns to the male costar, an artist, and remarks, “If that did it for me I’d be the luckiest guy in the world" (or words to that effect). Ray Bryant’s “After Hours" and “Slow Freight" do that for me. Deep rumbling bass notes, a full orchestral sound with gospel ...
Continue ReadingThe Ray Bryant Trio: The Ray Bryant Trio: Ray's Tribute to His Piano Friends
by C. Michael Bailey
Though I have several recordings on which Ray Bryant appears, I had been unaware of who he is and where he fits in the musical scheme of things. Recently, while listening to several demo CDs, I came across his newest recording, The Ray Bryant Trio: Ray?s Tribute to his Piano Friends, and fell in love with it. This is a recording that is not unlike Oscar Peterson?s A Tribute to My Friends (Pablo PACD-2310-902-2, 1987) except that Bryant?s tribute is ...
Continue ReadingRay Bryant Trio: Potpourri
by AAJ Staff
Although more complex than Gene Harris but not as cerebral as Herbie Nichols or Bud Powell, Ray Bryant is a pianist who likes his hard bop bluesy, funky and full of soul. Bryant was very hard at work in 1980, when he united with drummer Mickey Roker (a fellow Philadelphian) and bassist Jimmy Rowser for the excellent trio date Potpourri. The title is appropriate, for Bryant brings his warmth to everything from Miles Davis' “Milestones" (the modal tune, not the ...
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