Home » Jazz Articles » Album Review » The Dan Trudell Trio: Dan Trudell Plays The Piano

6

The Dan Trudell Trio: Dan Trudell Plays The Piano

By

View read count
The Dan Trudell Trio: Dan Trudell Plays The Piano
The decline of the joyously swinging piano trio has been greatly exaggerated. It may be an endangered species, but it's still out there, roaming the countryside, appearing when you least expect it, and making the occasional trip into a studio. Exhibit A is this fine recording from Dan Trudell, a Midwestern musical treasure who's renowned for his organ playing. Here, he casts aside that behemoth of an instrument and takes to the piano to deliver an ebullient program of music with some help from a world-class rhythm section—ubiquitous drummer Matt Wilson, Trudell's longtime friend and musical compatriot, and stellar bassist Joe Sanders.

While this band is basically a studio-concocted creation with only one rehearsal to its credit prior to making this recording, that shouldn't count against it; hundreds of miles may separate these men, as Wilson and Sanders are in the thick of the jazz scene and Trudell is living and working in Wisconsin, but nothing separates them when they get down to the business of playing. These three are on the same page here, whether delivering an animated performance of a Stevie Wonder hit ("Isn't She Lovely"), a beautifully nuanced interpretation of a modern jewel (Alicia Keys' "The Worth Of A Woman"), or a pair of originals written in honor of two piano giants ("McCoy For Now" for McCoy Tyner and "Jonesin'" for the late Hank Jones).

Trudell's nimble-fingered statements, Wilson's classy and enthusiastic drumming, and Sanders' in-the-zone bass work all come together without a hitch. These three bound along as one, Trudell and Wilson have a ball trading solos time and again, and Sanders literally brings a singing quality to his work, vocalizing along with his pointed solo statements. There's variety in the music, as this trio can give an Ahmad Jamal-worthy facelift to a classic ("That Old Black Magic"), make all the hits and swing with spirit ("If Ever I Would Leave You"), or play it straight for a semi-subdued modern soul scenario ("The Worth Of A Woman"), but there's nothing in that variety of music to alienate or upset the lovers of the piano trio tradition. This music carries wide appeal while helping to shine a light on a pianist deserving some attention.

Track Listing

Isn't She Lovely; I Let A Song Go Out Of My Heart; McCoy For Now; Jonesin'; The Old Black Magic; If Ever I Would Leave You; The Worth Of A Woman; Soulville.

Personnel

Dan Trudell
organ, Hammond B3

Dan Trudell: piano; Joe Sanders: bass; Matt Wilson: drums.

Album information

Title: Dan Trudell Plays The Piano | Year Released: 2015 | Record Label: Self Produced

Tags

Comments


PREVIOUS / NEXT




Support All About Jazz

Get the Jazz Near You newsletter All About Jazz has been a pillar of jazz since 1995, championing it as an art form and, more importantly, supporting the musicians who make it. Our enduring commitment has made "AAJ" one of the most culturally important websites of its kind, read by hundreds of thousands of fans, musicians and industry figures every month.

Go Ad Free!

To maintain our platform while developing new means to foster jazz discovery and connectivity, we need your help. You can become a sustaining member for as little as $20 and in return, we'll immediately hide those pesky ads plus provide access to future articles for a full year. This winning combination vastly improves your AAJ experience and allow us to vigorously build on the pioneering work we first started in 1995. So enjoy an ad-free AAJ experience and help us remain a positive beacon for jazz by making a donation today.

More

Tramonto
John Taylor
Ki
Natsuki Tamura / Satoko Fujii
Duality Pt: 02
Dom Franks' Strayhorn
The Sound of Raspberry
Tatsuya Yoshida / Martín Escalante

Popular

Old Home/New Home
The Brian Martin Big Band
My Ideal
Sam Dillon
Ecliptic
Shifa شفاء - Rachel Musson, Pat Thomas, Mark Sanders
Lado B Brazilian Project 2
Catina DeLuna & Otmaro Ruíz

Get more of a good thing!

Our weekly newsletter highlights our top stories, our special offers, and upcoming jazz events near you.

Install All About Jazz

iOS Instructions:

To install this app, follow these steps:

All About Jazz would like to send you notifications

Notifications include timely alerts to content of interest, such as articles, reviews, new features, and more. These can be configured in Settings.