Home » Jazz Articles » Album Review » The David Liebman Trio: Lieb Plays The Blues A La Trane

243

The David Liebman Trio: Lieb Plays The Blues A La Trane

By

View read count
Saxophonist Dave Liebman's rise into the jazz big time came from his stint in Miles Davis' band in the early seventies, playing soprano sax on the iconic trumpeter's often maligned but groundbreaking and excellent On the Corner (Columbia Records, 1972). It didn't hurt, profile-wise, working with drummer Elvin Jones, on Live at the Lighthouse (Blue Note Records, 1972). And, of course, the name "Elvin Jones," in a "degree of separation" mode, brings up John Coltrane, whom Liebman describes, in his succinct and straightforward liner notes to Lieb Plays The Blues À La Trane, as a "titanic influence on my life and music."

It's not Liebman's first full CD foray into the Coltrane canon. He recorded Homage to Coltrane (Owl Records) in 1987; but Lieb Plays The Blues À La Trane, recorded live, is a more spontaneous, off-the-cuff affair. The playing of the legendary saxophonist's repertoire on this particular night, during a 2008 Belgian tour, was a spur-of-the-moment decision. The resulting music has a feeling of loose and limber spontaneity, with interludes of raucous, rough-edged fun.

The disc opens with Miles Davis' "All Blues," from the classic Kind of Blue (Columbia,1959). Liebman is on soprano here, and both he and his trio simmer, with his sax lines snaking around an insistent rhythm. The group veers frenetically from the familiar melody, flying free.

The Coltrane originals—"Up Against the Wall," "Mr. P.C." and "Village Blues" —centerpiece the set, the first featuring Liebman on tenor sax, sounding brawny and bold. The fifteen minute-plus "Village Blues" is more laidback and fluid.

Liebman closes out with "Take the Coltrane," a tune written by Duke Ellington for Duke Ellington & John Coltrane (Impulse!, 1963). Lieb roars into a searing sheets-of-sound mode, à la Coltrane, for a rousing wrap-up on this fine nod to an influential jazz artist.

Track Listing

All Blues; Up Against the Wall; Mr. P.C.; Village Blues; Take the Coltrane.

Personnel

David Liebman: soprano saxophone, tenor saxophone; Marius Beets: bass; Eric Ineke: drums.

Album information

Title: Lieb Plays The Blues A La Trane | Year Released: 2010 | Record Label: Challenge 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.

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.