Home » Jazz Articles » Album Review » Sayuri Goto: Flashback

204

Sayuri Goto: Flashback

By

View read count
Sayuri Goto: Flashback
No other three instruments taken together can display the versatility and virtuosity of a jazz piano trio. For her debut as a leader, Sayuri Goto has added her own unique take on this format with Flashback, a session that evokes the masters while validating a beautiful new stylist. Goto has most recently been a New York City staple in trombonist Benny Powell's quintet and George Gee's big band. Co-producer Powell's musical lineage traces directly back to Basie, and Flashback's right-on inclusion of compositions that are associated with Basie, Monk, Dizzy, and pianist Randy Weston (alongside Goto's own elegantly emotive pieces) makes for a highly listenable package.

A newly composed intro to Weston's classic "Little Niles sets the stage perfectly for the piece's delightful minor passages, and her version of his "Berkshire Blues is a deliciously slow-moving setting for Goto and her bandmates to stretch out. Bassist Nat Reeves and drummer Gene Jackson work exceedingly well with Goto's crisp, accurate style on rhythmically unpredictable tunes like Monk's "Well You Needn't and the quick-paced Basie standard "Midgets. The rhythm section induces a broad Latin feel for Dizzy's "Manteca that has Goto breaking out some first-class bop and lays back just enough for an in-the-pocket version of "Silk Stockings.

While Goto's clean precise touch makes her a wonderful new voice in the bop tradition, her originals display a melodically strong composer. The session's title piece, presented in both gorgeous solo piano and powerful trio formats, is top notch lyrical jazz whose catchy melody could be a pop crossover with the right vocals. Likewise, the lovely expressive melodies of "Akiha and "Night Never End invite vocal interpretation, while "I Miss You effortlessly blends a hint of Japanese folk with straight-ahead jazz. With her mature melodic sense, Goto has produced an exceptionally strong first effort.

Track Listing

Little Niles; Well You Needn't; Akiha; Midgets; Flashback; Shiny Stockings; Night, Never End; Manteca; Berkshire Blues; I Miss You; Flashback (reprise).

Personnel

Sayuri Goto: piano; Nat Reeves: bass; Gene Jackson: drums.

Album information

Title: Flashback | Year Released: 2005 | Record Label: Fever Pitch Records

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.

Near

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.