Paul Edis (piano), Paul Susans (double bass) & Rob Walker
(drums/glass).
(Review by JC).
Having
just returned from a trip around the south of Italy which was big on scenery and
art but with some so-so food and completely free of live jazz, a trip to the
Cherry Tree seemed a very good way to fill these gaps. The band was advertised
as the Paul Edis Trio, which is always a good session and even though it turned
out not to be that Paul Edis Trio, I
was equally happy to discover it was another Trio with Edis called Triptych, as
I'd read about this group but not heard it.
Paul
began the session by reading out a definition of a triptych which I couldn't
quite hear but looking it up afterwards it said that a triptych
'is a work of art
that is divided into three sections, or three carved panels which are hinged
together and can be folded shut or displayed open'. Well there were certainly
three of them and they were on open display but there was nothing carved about
their playing which was fully alive. I'd seen a few triptychs on my Italian
travels that were mainly 14th century but with a bit too much gold leaf bling
and religious imagery to fit this group. I'd say musically this Triptych was
more a version of Hieronymus Bosch (The Garden of Earthly Delights) with their
diversity of musical ideas or Francis Bacon (take your pick) with tricky twisted
time signatures.
The band started in philosophical mode asking How High the Moon? and they examined
this question in an expert musical fashion in 7/8 time from a number of
different angles with piano and bass getting into detailed discussion of the finer
points. Then Edis continued his project of rescuing tunes sanitised by the pop
world with a beautifully structured version of Close to You that had all three musicians adding their solo
touches. The next piece was announced as an 'old English folk song connected
with Royalty' and it took a few bars to put a name to Greensleeves as it was delicately put through the band's creative
time signature mixer. Paul Susans played a fine bass solo and Rob Walker added
some idiosyncratic flourishes including playing his drink (which from a
distance looked like Campari and Soda) with a drumstick. Apparently this tune
was supposed to have composed by Henry VIII but possibly the Cole Porter of the
time felt it was wise not to argue the writing credit.
Amongst other tunes was Vernon Duke's I Can't Get Started ending with the
three soloing together followed by a trip even further back through time to the
Dark Ages, a Paul Edis composition
written for the group. This was a rich, moody piece which belied the reputation
of this historical period as an artistic wasteland. Staying in the past, the
folk song English Country Garden
The food as always provided the perfect
background to the music with a rare sighting on a menu, sea trout, being a
stand out dish. And its worth giving a mention to the very pleasantly
professional staff. A great night.
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