Home » Jazz Articles » Album Review » Monty Alexander Trio: Impressions in Blue

Monty Alexander Trio: Impressions in Blue

By C. Michael Bailey
June 25, 2003
View read count

Monty Alexander Trio: Impressions in Blue

Monty Alexander has been having his way with his repertoire under the Telarc umbrella, and the results so far have been uniformly fine. Impressions in Blue is the Jamaican pianist’s fifth outing for the label, preceded by the highly acclaimed My America , Goin’ Yard , Monty Meets Sly and Robbie , and Stir It Up: the Music of Bob Marley . Impressions in Blue is dedicated to the late bassist Ray Brown, for whom Mr. Alexander was an almost perfect accompanist. The spirit of Brown permeates the disc with bassist Hassan Shakur keeping that right-on-Ray-Brown time.

Alexander focuses his attention on all things blue for this recording. He opens the disc with a wide open trio reading to the high points of Gershwin’s "A Rhapsody in Blue." This concert piece has usually only received a "classical" treatment until Marcus Roberts deconstructed it with some success on Portraits in Blue. Alexander makes no pretenses to perform the entire work. He has very effectively distilled it to its swinging essence. The rhythm section of Shakur and Taylor are tight as a drum (pardon the pun) here and on the remainder of the recording.

Alexander has divided the recording into several different sections. Duke Reflections ("Come Sunday," "Creole Love Call") addresses an Ellington ballad and blues. Where the Trade Wind Blows ("Accompong," "Point-A-Pitre," "Eleuthra") goes back to the islands with breezy interpretations of Caribbean classics. King Cole Reflections ("Jumping At Capitol," "It’s Only A Paper Moon," "Body And Soul") intelligently focuses on mainstream jazz. Way Out West ("I’m an Old Cowhand") nods toward Sonny Rollins and his famous treatment of the same.

Monty Alexander wears the mantle of grace as the most enduring jazz pianist since the late Gene Harris. His creativity is without bound and interpretations are always tasteful. Let us hope that Alexander continues to drive his own repertoire.

Visit Telarc Jazz and Monty Alexander .

Track Listing

Blue Rhapsody; En Aranjuez Con Tu Amor; Come Sunday; Creole Love Call; Accompong; Point-A- Pitre; Eleuthra; Jumpin At Capitol; It

Personnel

Monty Alexander

piano

Monty Alexander

Album information

Title: Impressions in Blue | Year Released: 2003 | Record Label: Telarc Records

PREVIOUS / NEXT

Syncopated Taint Septet
< Previous

Rule Of Three
Next >

Monty Alexander Concerts

Oct 4 Sat

Amelia Island Jazz Festival - Monty Alexander in Concert

Courtyard Springhill Suites By Marriott, Amelia Island
Amelia Island, FL

Support All About Jazz

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.