Tony Tixier (piano/comp.); Karl McComas-Reichl (bass); Tommy Crane (drums).
(Review by Lance).
A collection of Tixier compositions interspersed with a few 'sweeteners' that are sufficiently stirred to be almost originals in their own right. Tight Like This is nothing like the Armstrong tune although it purports to be the same and is actually none the worse for that. French-born, NYC based, Tixier is described as being as much inspired by Ravel and Tatum as Hancock, Jarrett or Ayden Esin. Either way is good enough for me.
Darn That Dream brings to mind Bill Evans and McComas-Reichl's bass solo is fit to stand alongside any of the great bassists past and present - an absolute gem.
As the title implies, Blind Jealousy of a Paranoid is frantic with mood swings and an abrupt ending - was it homicide or un crime passionnel? Stevie Wonder's Isn't She Lovely?, the third of the three standards, is given a fascinating take reminding us that Stevie himself can cut it in jazz circles (it is said that he warms up by playing Giant Steps) and Tixier does both tune and tunesmith justice without losing his own identity.
Tixier sums it up when he refers to McComas-Reichl and Crane: "My music needs more than solo piano, so they shape it, provide space and move it in different directions".
Amen.
Lance
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