With this his eleventh album, French-American
pianist Franck Amsallem and team deliver a marvelous near-hour of grand trio
music. The ten-track album is comprised of well-known classics (The Summer
Knows and Unforgettable), three fine Amsallem original compositions
and other well-selected tunes.
The sessions kicks off with Blue Gardenia, a beautiful tune that is sadly under-recorded. Nat King Cole and Dinah Washington both took the tune to the top of the charts. Here, Amsallem turns the clock back to 1958 in a fine rendition that ghosts Ahmad Jamal’s Poinciana. Kush Abadey’s toms give that away from the get-go. Amsallem is effervescent on the take and solos with joyous appeal. It’s a terrific opener.
David Wong’s fine bass opens La Chanson d’Helene a slower, triple-metered piece. The Philip Sarde composition as presented here has a tad of melancholy with Amsallem and Wong in a duo. Amsallem is almost vocal in both his phrasing and touch here, alternating upper key motifs and a recurring statement with Wong. It’s a somewhat deep, dramatic track.
Unforgettable, is a selection iconically linked to Nat King Cole. The tempo is light swing. Amsallem once again is upbeat, alternating between slick lines and block chords. His solo is brilliantly constructed and the support given by Wong and Abadey is perfection. The three seem to relish being in the proverbial pocket. Wong sends up a tasty solo and Amsellem comps with fine flair.
You Won’t Forget Me was originally
recorded by Helen Merrill in 1956 and also covered by Shirley Horn, Melody
Gardot and others. This rendition is a hard-charging Latin presentation. Amsallem
revels in it. His solo on this track is intense and muscular. It’s arguably his
best solo on the session. Abadey covers his kit in a fine ride. A highlight
among highlights on the album.
Amsallem is somewhat of a throwback of sorts to when pianists were not only enmeshed in melody, but who also respected the ear of their audiences by threading melody through motivic elements in their solos. He’s an easy – and fascinating – listen. With awesome technique, swing, taste and time, his efforts across the date validate the fact that he’s a pianist’s pianist.
Michel Legrand’s and the Bergman’s The Summer Knows displays Amsallem’s fine sensitive touch and command of his axe. The song has become a jazz standard over the fifty-plus years since its incorporation in Summer of ’42 (Warner Bros., 1971) and this trio honors it well.
Agrigento is the name of an ancient city in the Southwest corner of Sicily. No old stuff here; this track is a fine contemporary Amsallem original. Abadey and Wong drive the rhythm bed as the pianist explores various textures and intensities. The track is quite exciting and features terrific creative interplay among the trio.
The solid swinging original Cotton Trails has Bop overtones and
Amsallem and the crew swing heavy. It Never Was You, originally composed
by Kurt Weill and Maxwell Anderson for the 1938 Broadway play, Knickerbocker
Holiday (and used in the 1944 movie) is delivered in glorious style by
Amsallem. There’s great emotion expressed here and it is obvious the song dwells
in and speaks from the artist’s heart. Disclosure closes out the session
as a straight-ahead swinger with blue shadings.
The Summer Knows is a superior recording offering a powerful display of superior
musicianship all around. Amsallem and his exciting younger bassist and drummer
present a bravura trio performance that engages and enthralls. Nick Mondello
Blue Gardenia; La Chanson d’Helene; You
Won’t Forget Me; The Summer Knows; Unforgettable; Cotton Trails; Agrigento; It
Never Was You; Morning Star; Disclosure
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