Home » Jazz Articles » Album Review » Chad Lawson Trio: Unforeseen

232

Chad Lawson Trio: Unforeseen

By

Sign in to view read count
Chad Lawson Trio: Unforeseen
Nothing particularly earthshaking or groundbreaking here; just a well oiled piano trio going after an engaging set tunes, melody in the forefront.

Pianist Chad Lawson has an ear for fine melodies on this collection that mixes standards, a few rock tunes, and four of his own first rate compositions.

The set opens with "Past Reference," a Lawson original: a slightly sad atmosphere with flashes of right hand brightness that sounds like a tune you've heard before, Lawson playing in front of a gently propulsive rhythm. The original leads into Sting's "Every Little Thing She Does is Magic," with the same insistence in the rhythm—Zack Page's cushioned, propulsive bass, Alfred Sergel's textured timekeeping.

The thing that keeps coming back to me on this one is how reverent the trio is to the original melodies of the familiar tunes, while adding just a hint of an edge to freshen them. And while Sting's song—and the Beatles' "Michelle" and Soundgarden's "Black Hole Sun"—give the set a modern appeal, for this ear it's the standards that push things over the top: Arlen and Mercer's "My Shining Hour"—beautiful; and a fittingly pensive take on "In the Wee Small Hours of the Morning."

A perfectly paced set of well-chosen covers mixed in with some inventive and appealing originals.

Track Listing

Past Reference, Every Little Thing She Does is Magic, Litttle Person, Michelle, In the Wee Small Hour, Unforeseen, Black Hole Sun, My Shining Hour, Alone Together, So You Said

Personnel

Chad Lawson—piano; Alfred Sergel—drums; Zack Page—bass

Album information

Title: Unforeseen | Year Released: 2004 | Record Label: Summit Records

Comments

Tags


For the Love of 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 create 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.

You Can Help
To expand our coverage even further and develop new means to foster jazz discovery and connectivity we need your help. You can become a sustaining member for a modest $20 and in return, we'll immediately hide those pesky ads plus provide access to future articles for a full year. This winning combination will vastly improve 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

Fiesta at Caroga
Afro-Caribbean Jazz Collective
Fellowship
David Gibson
Immense Blue
Olie Brice / Rachel Musson / Mark Sanders

Popular

Get more of a good thing!

Our weekly newsletter highlights our top stories, our special offers, and upcoming jazz events near you.