Francesco Falcioni (pno); Dave Parker (bs); Rob Bates (dms); Ray Johnson (tpt/flug).
(Review by Lance).
A workmanlike performance by four stellar musicians. Although no boundaries were stretched, the music was anything but insular, reaching out to the 15 or so souls who'd made the pilgrimage to the Jazz Coop's HQ in NE4.
It was a bit like old times with a rock band belting out mega decibels in the downstairs bar, rarely in time or in tune with the more sedate goings on upstairs, but seemingly to the delight of the clientele.
The quartet opened up with Joe Henderson's Recorda Me. FF elected to use the Rhodes-like setting on the Clavinova which had a rather muddy sound compared to the clarity of the instrument's acoustic tonality. Bass was slightly inaudible although trumpet and drums came through loud and clear. Fortunately, as the set unfolded, the balance improved.
Johnson blew My One and Only Love on flugel sounding as elegant as he looked in his polka-dot shirt (I mention the shirt as I was wearing a similar one!)
Lee Morgan's album The Sidewinder provided Boy What a Night. A bluesy waltz, it showed all four guys off to good advantage.
FF had a couple of his own tunes on the menu; a bossa nova, Blue Marine and another waltz, Ma Cerise. Both impressive compositions.
The set closed with a couple of Herbie Hancock tunes - Dolphin Dance and The Maze. Johnson's flugel featured on the former and Bates drums on the latter.
An enjoyable set but, fate decreed I left during the intermission. What had started out as a minor sniffle developed into a nasal torrent so, rather than set off a pandemic amongst the jazz community, I reluctantly departed.
Lance.
Photos.
1 comment :
It was a great gig!
I hope you are feeling better now Lance!
Post a Comment