Jazz Articles about William Parker

William Parker: Sound Unity

by Michael McCaw
September 6, 2005

Years of gigs in various formations with the same musicians can create relationships where you learn your partners' tendencies and how to push them in ways that others simply cannot. And when these musicians come together to record, the results can often mark an apex in their respective recording careers. Sound Unity, taped during 2004 live performances in Canada, is such a milestone for this quartet led by William Parker.To say the least, the bassist, composer, and bandleader ...

William Parker Quartet: Sound Unity

by Rex Butters
September 3, 2005

From the musicians responsible for the classic O'Neal's Porch session (Centering Music, 2001; AUM Fidelity, 2002) comes Sound Unity, the William Parker Quartet recorded live in Canada in 2004. Bassist William Parker, drummer Hamid Drake, alto saxophonist Rob Brown, and trumpeter Lewis Barnes swing hard and bluesy, haunted and lyrical. These four musicians create palpable magic from the bubbling cauldron of empathic ensemble playing and daring solo work backed by masterful technical skill.

The jaunty “Hawaii (for the ...

Fred Anderson: Blue Winter

by Michael McCaw
August 23, 2005

Listening to Fred Anderson can sometimes be akin to listening to a sage or prophet. Wordless history and wisdom simply pour from the bell of his horn, allowing him to communicate with listeners on a different level than most other musicians. Recorded on December 12, 2004, this two-CD, nearly 150-minute complete performance with William Parker and Hamid Drake speaks on many levels.Since Anderson's decision to return to music full time in the nineties (and still run ...

William Parker: Sound Unity & Two Masters & Mass for the Healing of the World

by Jeff Stockton
July 9, 2005

William Parker Quartet Sound Unity AUM Fidelity 2005

Recorded live in Montreal and Vancouver during the William Parker Quartet's tour in the summer of 2004, Sound Unity doesn't pack the same startling punch as the the group's first release, 2001's O'Neal's Porch (AUM Fidelity), but this pianoless quartet, with its blend of tight inside and out playing, demon-possessed solos, and relentless groove delivers like no other band in jazz. Rob Brown's keening alto still ...

William Parker: Luc's Lantern

by Jeff Stockton
May 4, 2005

Where's Hamid Drake, you might ask. And who is pianist Eri Yamamoto? These questions quickly become secondary as you discover that the latest William Parker release in Thirsty Ear's Blue Series is as musically interesting, listenable, and rewarding as his previous efforts for the label: Painter's Spring (2000), Raining on the Moon (2002), and Scrapbook (2003). From the opening “Adena, where the trio gradually takes the tune rhythmically outside, with Parker's bass leading the way to the brief atmospheric coda ...

William Parker: Luc

by Rex Butters
April 16, 2005

William Parker's latest trio disc for Thirsty Ear features pianist Eri Yamamato, a classical prodigy who moved to New York, bagged the powdered wigs, and threw herself into jazz head first at the New School. Yamamoto joins the archbassist and drummer Michael Thompson for what must be the most overtly jazz-oriented album in the TE catalogue. Parker's elegant lyricism and earthy romanticism guides these occasionally breathtaking sessions.

“Adena follows a medium tempo groove that keeps the trio time-locked until Parker's ...

William Parker on Freedom

by James Taylor
April 7, 2005

This month, bassist William Parker celebrates the release of Luc's Lantern, his most recent recording for acclaimed Thirsty Ear Records. With pianist Matthew Shipp, as a part of David S. Ware's prolific quartet, with Cecil Taylor, Fred Anderson and others, the enigmatic performer has recorded over thirty albums, and almost that many as a leader himself. Yet it somehow seems as though William Parker's name remains stuck in the avant-garde scene, save some respect from hip-hop heads turned on by ...