In 1968 Kenny Wheeler and the John Dankworth Orchestra released Windmill Tilter, an album composed by Kenny Wheeler. Wheeler’s second album, Song For Someone, came out in 1973. In between he wrote and arranged for a big band whose only outlet was the BBC who broadcast the Band’s performances in the 1970s. These tunes and arrangements have been exhumed from that era and make up this album. Some of them (e.g. Smatta (as Smatter) and Song For Someone) have been heard before on albums from the period and, happily, Norma Winstone and Evan Parker have also traversed the arc from those seventies albums to appear on Some Days are Better.
I always
thought that Wheeler’s writing for large ensembles allowed him to set up
numerous threads running through the music, some of which it was possible to
follow whilst others were simply subsumed into a greater whole. And this album,
you’ll be pleased to hear, is what I regard as proper Big Band playing with the
Band supporting the flying soloists, rather than just joining in in between, as
happens with some similar ensembles.
Opener, Smatta, tries to cover all the emotional
bases with delicate, mournful trumpet playing in between hefty,
boots-on-the-ground full blooded swinging from the whole band. Parker gets his
first chance to shine, roaring in on tenor at the start of the Some Days Are Better Suite, before a
swift hand off to Nick Smart whilst the band creates all sort of heavy weather
behind them. A total breakdown leads to a time of building by the band that
leads to an extended, argumentative soprano solo, defiantly faced down by the
other musicians. Bassist Niklas Lukassen, who has held the bottom of the piece
together through all the twists and turns steps into the spotlight with a
calming solo. Dallab is exactly what
it says on the tin (if you looked at the tin in a mirror), atmospheric and
yearning and decorated by the plaintiff flugelhorn soloing of James Copus and
the brooding, intense piano of Shelly Berg. Sweet
Yakity Waltz keeps the light low to begin with, allowing Chris Potter’s
tenor to shine through; later Donovan Haffner’s alto is equally prominent in
its knotty fury; Winstone floats her vocals like a fine thread through the
piece with the band alternately pushing the piece forward from behind and
boldly standing up centre stage. One of the highlights of the album, Song For Someone, stands out for its
elegance. Maria Quintinella’s wordless vocal floats above or as part of the band,
leading them on or rising above them as the band falls away. The contrast
between the fragility of the voice at times against the weight of the ensemble
playing draws the listener in.
C.P.E.P. is altogether
meatier with Sam Keedy’s trombone providing some real heft before the band
charges in and Keedy fights them off, arguing with Jacob Smith’s drums.
Parker’s tenor joins in the ‘discussion’ turning and twisting as the band tries
to overwhelm him; he’s defiant to the end. Who’s
Standing in My Corner? comes as a surprise, it’s an easy rolling slice of Latinate
funk soul given a bit of an edge by solos from Smart and Haffner that stop it
from being too smooth, such that it almost fails to fit in with the rest of the
album. Introduction to No Particular Song
is a cool five minutes that features a lovely duet between Lukassen’s bass
and Josh Beck’s piano; Ananda Brandao’s drum solo is frustrating in its brevity
as he rolls, sparingly, around the kit. Closer, Everybody Knows It, opens with the band in full voice with
Quintella wailing forcefully on top, only falling away as Eric Law’s soprano
rises through the mix, sharp and jabbing, in conversation with Brandao’s drums
and Lukassen’s bass. (Lukassen has proved himself as one of the stars of the
show on this album). Quintella duets with Daversa’s trumpet winding, sinuously
around his lines. A lonesome, plaintiff line from Daversa leads us into a final
flourish from all concerned.
ECM have recently reissued Gnu
High and Angelsong, two of
Wheeler’s many career highs and keeping the tills turning in the market for
Wheelernalia the release of some days are better ties in with the publication, on 1 February
2025, of Song for Someone: The Musical
Life of Kenny Wheeler (Equinox Books) by Brian Shaw and Nick Smart. Dave Sayer
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