Home » Jazz Articles » Album Review » Curlew: North America

157

Curlew: North America

By

View read count
Curlew: North America
The original North America LP was issued for the Moers record label back in 1986. Thankfully, Cuneiform Records has released this gem along with several tracks culled from a 1983 performance at the New York City venue known as Mort’s Place.

Curlew was in the vortex of New York’s early '80s “downtown scene,” thanks to an enticingly unique blend of rock, free-jazz and soul-drenched inclinations. This outing features some downright scorching work from saxophonist/leader George Cartwright, the late cellist Tom Cora, and others of note. The studio performances culled from the original LP are comprised of pumping rock beats, pleasantly off-kilter phrasings by the soloists and free form jazz stylizations. However, Cartwright and associates also pursue abstract waltz motifs and catchy melodies amid a predominately blustery, mode of deployment. On “Light Sentence,” guitarist Mark Howell injects trebly, C&W style twang choruses into the mix, as drummer Pippin Barnett playfully throws the band off course via odd-metered backbeats. Occasionally the ensemble is apt to derail a 2/4 time signature via rapidly executed shifts in strategy and a distinct sense of unabashed abandon. The live tracks consist of heated exchanges from guitarist Nicky Skopelitis Cartwright and Cora.

Overall, this group nestles an array of styles into its repertoire, to coincide with a singular voice that—to this day—projects a sense of newness and originality unfettered by trends or gimmicks. No doubt, they’re in a class of their own. Highly recommended...

Cuneiform Records

Track Listing

1.Ray 2.Oklahoma 3.Knee Songs 2 4.Person To Person 5.Time and a Half 6.Mink

Personnel

Personnel on North America: George Cartwright: alto, tenor saxophones

Album information

Title: North America | Year Released: 2003 | Record Label: Cuneiform Records

Tags

Comments

About Curlew

Articles | Concerts | Albums | Photos | Similar

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

Eternal Moments
Yoko Yates
From "The Hellhole"
Marshall Crenshaw
Tramonto
John Taylor

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.