Jazz Articles

Drew Gress: The Irrational Numbers

by Mark F. Turner
March 1, 2008

Drew Gress might be suffering from a Dr. Jekyll/Mr. Hyde complex. On one side, he's the mild-mannered, in-demand bassist whose exemplary fret work has supported other artists' recordings--pianist Fred Hersch, The Claudia Quintet's For (Cuneiform Records, 2007) and the Steve Lehman Quintet's On Meaning (Pi Recordings, 2007), to name just a few. However, on the flip side, a ferocious alter-ego emerges when Gress is a leader, producing some of the most dynamically forward music in the current environment with The ...

Drew Gress: The Irrational Numbers

by John Kelman
December 19, 2007

Bassist Drew Gress returns with the same group from 7 Black Butterflies (Premonition, 2005), but The Irrational Numbers is more than a logical continuation of Butterflies' postmodern lyricism. Instead, it's an album of more vivid extremes, ranging from detailed writing to even freer improvisational exchanges and an overall greater sense of adventure. Not that Butterflies was anything but intrepid, but Numbers ups the ante with ten Gress originals, proving the old adage about being the sum total of one's experiences. ...

Drew Gress: 7 Black Butterflies

by Rex Butters
September 2, 2005

Drew Gress throws his contender for year's best in with 7 Black Butterflies, a crackling collection uniting a stellar cast of players who live up to their collective reputation. With Tim Berne, Ralph Alessi, Craig Taborn, and Tom Rainey fully engaged, Gress holds an all-aces hand. His multifaceted compositions provide the tracks for this ride, while the quintet provides the vivid scenery. While Berne, Alessi, and Taborn usually inhabit worlds of sonic phenomena, the simple acoustic setting here spotlights the ...

Drew Gress: 7 Black Butterflies

by John Kelman
June 13, 2005

Along with Scott Colley, Drew Gress must be the most ubiquitous bassist on the New York scene. Gress' broad stylistic reach has allowed him to support artists including pianist Fred Hersch, trumpeter Dave Douglas, and saxophonist Tim Berne since arriving on the scene in the late '80s. Capable of bringing an unerring sense of tradition to mainstream acts and a free-spirited sense of adventure to those from left of centre, Gress has also been gradually emerging as a composer of ...

Drew Gress: 7 Black Butterflies

by Sean Patrick Fitzell
June 12, 2005

Bassist Drew Gress consistently delivers, whether he's playing straight-ahead or outwardly adventurous music. He maintains a vigorous touring and recording schedule with a swath of the jazz community. Though creatively challenging, this approach has limited the time he has to develop his own music. With 7 Black Butterflies, his third CD as a leader, Gress makes a compelling musical statement with structured and purposeful composition, supported by focused improvisation. While the tunes are often complex, both rhythmically ...

Drew Gress: 7 Black Butterflies

by AAJ Staff
May 31, 2005

Most of the music on this exhilarating record defies easy description. Much of it is lyrical, even beautiful. There's some driving, fiery swing. The improvising is of a consistently high order throughout. And Gress contributes his inventive compositions, with structures that challenge the improvisers with knotty harmonies and tempo changes. On 7 Black Butterflies, the whole is greater than the sum of the parts, and the parts are extraordinarily good.

Tim Berne's contribution is obvious. The alto saxophonist ...

Drew Gress: 7 Black Butterflies

by Mark F. Turner
May 24, 2005

Music that reveals beauty even in the Rhinoceros... To say that Drew Gress may be one of today's premier bassists/composers is a bold statement, but one with considerable merit. The veteran player has profoundly enhanced numerous recordings by names like Uri Crane, Don Byron, and Ravi Coltrane with his distinct sound, dynamic playing, and writing abilities. But his most revealing work has been on his own recordings, of which 7 Black Butterflies is simply a cut above ...

Dave Douglas/Louis Sclavis/Peggy Lee/Dylan Van Der Schyff: Bow River Falls

by Sean Patrick Fitzell
October 3, 2004

Recorded one afternoon during the Banff Workshop, Bow River Falls is trumpeter Dave Douglas' first cooperative effort since New and Used in the early '90s. Douglas, clarinetist Louis Sclavis, cellist Peggy Lee and drummer Dylan Van Der Schyff all contributed compositions, mostly from their earlier discographies, which were rearranged for this session. Perhaps because of the idyllic setting or the “leaderless" collaboration, the music exudes the relaxed confidence of musicians performing at their peak, despite their sparse rehearsal time.

Dave Douglas/Louis Sclavis/Peggy Lee/Dylan Van Der Schyff: Bow River Falls

by John Kelman
August 21, 2004

With a discography that is as varied as it is large, trumpeter Dave Douglas has rightly earned the many accolades showered upon him since his emergence in the early '90s. From the Parallel Worlds string ensemble to the electronica of his Freak In group, his work has been characterized by a broad sense of exploration and an impossible-to-pigeon-hole originality. So when Kenny Werner asked him to direct the annual Banff Workshop in '02, he chose to reconvene a group that ...

Von Freeman: The Great Divide

by Mark Sabbatini
July 22, 2004

There's an inclination to treat an 81-year-old sax master with kid gloves when assessing a new recording, but Von Freeman needs no such assistance.

The Great Divide continues his late in life resurgence as he pays tribute to former co-players Coleman Hawkins, Lester Young and Charlie Parker. It may not be a landmark album, but there's no doubt Freeman is masterful player and Divide is a pleasure from start to finish.

Freeman, whose previous album ...