Home » Jazz Articles » Album Review » Three For All: Premonition

229

Three For All: Premonition

By

View read count
The Washington D.C.-based trio Three for All is that rarest of things in today's jazz world - a working band. And the strong sense of familiarity and group cohesion that can only be developed during countless nights together on the bandstand is evident on Premonition , the trio's solid new release on ALM Records.

Drummer Lenny Robinson - a veteran of tours with the likes of Ahmad Jamal, Lou Donaldson and Don Braden, and a current member of Stanley Turrentine's band - is the group's elder statesman and the album's producer. Robinson and his young cohorts, pianist Allyn Johnson and bassist Mykle Lyons, are all established jazz educators with superb chops and a deep knowledge of the modern jazz idiom. Together, they deliver an album of highly enjoyable straight-ahead jazz with a heavy dose of blues and funk.

Johnson is the trio's primary composer, contributing six originals, including the powerful opener "David and Goliath," with its hints of Coltrane and McCoy Tyner, the hymn-like "Sacred Dance," and "Goodbye Kenny," a moving tribute to the late pianist Kenny Kirkland. "Cat's Dance" offers a taste of the Washington, D.C. funk-dance beat called go-go, played by the trio behind a poetic recitation (not a rap) by baritone Steve Bryant. Rounding out the set are "O.S.," a high-energy original by Lyons, a faster than usual take on the standard "There Will Never Be Another You," and a romp through the Tommy Flanagan blues, "Freight Train." All in all, a satisfying effort that proves jazz is in safe hands in the nation's capital.

Personnel

Lenny Robinson, drums; Allyn Johnson, piano; Mykle Lyons, bass.

www.3-forall.com

Album information

Title: Premonition | Year Released: 2000 | Record Label: ALM Records


About Three For All

Tags


PREVIOUS / NEXT




Become a Sustaining Member

Get the Jazz Near You newsletter

Since 1995, All About Jazz has championed jazz as an art form and supported the musicians who create it. Over three decades, it has grown into one of the world's leading jazz resources, serving hundreds of thousands of readers, musicians, presenters and industry professionals each month.

Help Build the Future of All About Jazz

Your support helps us continue building All About Jazz for the next generation—expanding our editorial coverage, preserving jazz history, developing new community features and creating better ways to discover the music and the people behind it.

Become a sustaining member for as little as $20 per year and you'll immediately enjoy an ad-free experience along with access to subscriber features and future articles for a full year.

Together, we're not simply sustaining All About Jazz—we're building its future. Thank you for being part of the journey.

More

A Distant Land
Rich Halley 4
Renovation
Benny Green
Kevin Sun, I.
Kevin Sun

Popular

Desolation Row
David Maranha / Rodrigo Amado
2014 NYC
King Crimson
Beneath Lifted Skies
Linda May Han Oh & Melissa Aldana
Talamanti
Patricia Brennan and Sylvie Courvoisier

Get more of a good thing!

Our weekly newsletters highlight our top stories, top album reviews, website news, free songs, radio & podcast shows, news, 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.