In
his debut album, Balancing
Act,
pianist, composer and educator, Zachary Bartholomew and an array of A-listers
deliver ten unique Bartholomew originals. The fare is both eclectic and, in a
descriptive sense, electric. There’s an abundance of excitement that is
delivered in varied textures with an enormity of rhythmic variation and
ingenuity.
Crazy Socks kicks the session off up-tempo with a hip – and vividly colorful – Tadd Dameron-like melody executed over classic bop changes. Trumpeter Benny Benack III sets off on an invigorating solo. The leader grabs the reins and offers his own statements. This is an enjoyable neo-bop take.
A
spinning-wheel piano motif intro launches Sunny
Days Driven By, a nine-minute narrative that grabs from bar one and
develops brilliantly. Tempos change to a slower, contemplative plane with the
original melody re-appearing. The altered textures and tempos add to the
track’s delight. Drummer Rodolfo Zuniga provides fine support and interplay
with the leader’s highly-expressive playing. Bassist Marty Quinn gets involved
with a highly-exposed solo. The tag finishes things off before a board fade
sunset.
Another
fierce track, Bring the Noise, has
the frontline of Benack and saxophonist David Fernandez stating the melody over
the rhythm section’s energized bed. Bartholomew’s solo develops from fragmental
to expansive across the totality of his keyboard jaunt. There are definitive
Afro and Afro-Cuban rhythmic bits here. Benack, who’s known for his keen
versatility across multiple styles, is improvisationally right at home in a
post-bop style. Surprisingly, there’s no sax solo.
Fernandez
gets his chance, opening up and stretching out intensely on Hobo’s Lullaby. There’s
no slumber here. The polyrhythmic setting gives the saxophonist, and all, plenty
of negotiating room. Drummer Rodolfo Zuniga’s set work clicks and clacks in the
spirited nature of the piece.
The
title track, Balancing Act, commences
as a latter-day Monk-ish triple-metered Q and A melody before it develops both melodically
and rhythmically. The fulcrum here is the fine interplay with bass and drums.
Bartholomew, Quinn and Zuniga then take off into a straight-ahead swinger. Bassist
Quinn provides a fine solo with the pianist minimally comping. The melody
re-appears to literally balance the structure out. This is an intriguing hooker
of a track
Bartholomew’s
playing is effusive, highly-rhythmically varied, and his left-hand work is as
interesting as the improv juices that flow from his right. He slyly brings in full
block chords to add further dimension to his fine solos. As a composer, his
selections have a deep rhythmic foundation with melodies following a similar
suit. Benack and Fernandez make a terrific frontline where they appear and
Marty Quinn and Rodolfo Zuniga are a matched set of cookers.
The Long and Winding Road,
certainly not to be confused with the hit the Beatles had in 1970 (Apple
Records, 1970), is a polyrhythmic Latin-Carib driver with piano and soprano sax
bringing unbridled happiness. Fernandez unleashes long, fluid and fiery lines.
A middle section becomes darker, uncertain and eventually more ominous than the
joyous opening statements. The texture is dramatic, almost cinematic with
Bartholomew spewing rhythmic lines and pulsating repeated notes. As elsewhere,
he’s fearless in his improv approach.
The
tail end of this tale heads home to the happier original platform. A pulsating
bass and keyboard springs into an intense There
and Back Again, where a simple melody expands into devilishly flourishing
repeated motifs. The track evokes a poetic landscape, bursting on again and
off. It is an exposition of repetitive multi-rhythmic explosions. It is
reminiscent to this ear to that of pianist/composer, Bob James at his most
popular best.
Midnite Nefarity
offers another polyrhythmic funhouse which gravitates into a slow dirge-like
segment before the original rhythmic line joins. This is a darker track with
deep cinematic overtones. Bartholomew’s solo continues to thrive with heated
support from both bass and drums. His movement into the piano’s altissimo
register adds to the drama while Fernandez solos simultaneously – it is certainly
a dance in the dark. A bonus track sans Fernandez and Benack’s horns ends the
date with a tight, swinging ribbon. There Bartholomew delivers one of his key
solos on the album.
Balancing Act is an exciting album with plenty of substance to engage and entertain. Nick Mondello
*See also HERE.
Tracks: Crazy Socks; Sunny Days Driven By; Bring the Noise; Hobo’s Lullaby; Balancing Act; The Long and Winding Road; Time Apart; There and Back Again; Mirror Image; Midnite Nefarity; Bonus Track: Crazy Socks (trio)
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