Lazaro Vega Posted January 10, 2006 Report Share Posted January 10, 2006 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- January 9, 2006 Critics' Choice New CD's By THE NEW YORK TIMES John McNeil "East Coast Cool" (OmniTone) Some jazz groups can't escape their instrumentation. A quartet with piano, vibraphone, bass and drums must deal with the fact that it uses the same instruments as the Modern Jazz Quartet; it will have to define itself in relation to the band that got there first. The same goes for a band with trumpet, baritone saxophone, bass and drums: it has to orient itself either toward or away from Gerry Mulligan's original pianoless quartet, which he formed with Chet Baker in Los Angeles in 1952. The trumpeter John McNeil has kept a fairly low profile as a bandleader over the last 30 years, but recently he has been making a highly likable series of let's-try-anything records with OmniTone. He uses his new album to imagine a possibility: What if a band with the same instruments as the Mulligan-Baker group played themes with boiled down, contrapuntal lines, in honor of the ones Mulligan wrote, but engaged the bass and drums much more? (Mulligan's quartet records were beautiful but rhythmically dry.) To put it another way, what if that general sound, with the same blend of timbres and the same respect for concise melody, was generally brought up to date, made more flexible, with a more interactive group? What would it sound like? Any attempt to answer that depends on who the musicians are. Because the musicians with Mr. McNeil on "East Coast Cool" are Allan Chase on baritone saxophone, John Hebert on bass and Matt Wilson on drums, the music can remind you as much of Ornette Coleman's early-60's quartet - another important pianoless band - as Gerry Mulligan's early-50's one. Mr. McNeil wants to unlock the neat, airy, compressed feeling of the Mulligan quartet; he wants to open it up to modern possibilities. And he wants the music at least half planted on the ground. (A full-on free-jazz homage to Gerry Mulligan, who really liked his structure and swing, would make no sense.) So the pieces on the album, all originals but two - one of which is "Bernie's Tune," which the Mulligan band made famous - tend to have either a proscribed tonal center or a strong, swinging rhythm. Where there is actual free jazz, it's just an interlude, put in for variety: "Wanwood," a good, original ballad, has a few of these circumscribed sections. All the composing and arranging devices Mr. McNeil uses to discipline these pieces - the sudden dropping out of one or more musicians, the changes in rhythm, the use of a 12-tone row - give the music its character, but the wonder of the record is its breezy transparency. Mr. Wilson has a light, bouncing touch, which sounds like a result of a lot of listening to Billy Higgins; Mr. McNeil sprawls through long, Don Cherry-style improvisations - weaving in and out of tonal harmony - using a clear, dry, clarion upper register. And Mr. Chase, filling Mulligan's role, does the most to seal the record's connection to what inspired it: he plays with balance and authority, and keeps the temperature of his improvisations low. Mulligan fans shouldn't come to this wanting to hear what he would have done; it's a record that borrows its starting point, but comes to its own conclusions. BEN RATLIFF Copyright 2006The New York Times Company Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JSngry Posted January 10, 2006 Report Share Posted January 10, 2006 John McNeil's a fine player. Played in Horace Silver's road band quite a bit in the 70s but never recorded with him that I know of. This one sounds interesting. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mailman Posted January 11, 2006 Report Share Posted January 11, 2006 This one was added on emusic today. I Haven't had a chance to listen to the sound samples yet but the description in the Times does make it sound interesting. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BFrank Posted January 12, 2006 Report Share Posted January 12, 2006 This one was added on emusic today. I Haven't had a chance to listen to the sound samples yet but the description in the Times does make it sound interesting. Good to know. I checked yesterday and it wasn't there. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ghost of miles Posted January 12, 2006 Report Share Posted January 12, 2006 This one grabbed my attention when I saw it on Alan's Jazzmatazz site--thanks for posting the article, Lazaro. Provided some elaboration that makes me want to hear it even more. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
relyles Posted January 12, 2006 Report Share Posted January 12, 2006 By coincidence I just heard one track from this disc. Really terrific. I have one Allan Chase recording as a leader. I was not aware that he plays baritone as I always thought he was primarily an alto sax player. The track I heard was great and I will be seeking this recording out. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lazaro Vega Posted January 21, 2006 Author Report Share Posted January 21, 2006 Came in today. Will try and play some of it tonight on Jazz From Blue Lake..... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JSngry Posted January 21, 2006 Report Share Posted January 21, 2006 I've heard it now, and I like it more than I love it. There are moments, though..... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CJ Shearn Posted January 21, 2006 Report Share Posted January 21, 2006 I saw him live a few years ago and had his album with Spanish jazz musicians. it was very interesting. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
clifford_thornton Posted January 21, 2006 Report Share Posted January 21, 2006 I've heard it now, and I like it more than I love it. There are moments, though..... Right. Agreed, but it is strong in parts. Several tracks reminiscient of the Dixon-Shepp band, ca. '62, which is often a good thing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
clifford_thornton Posted January 21, 2006 Report Share Posted January 21, 2006 I know it's a NYT thing, but please Ratliff, the formalities get annoying. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JSngry Posted January 21, 2006 Report Share Posted January 21, 2006 That's Mr. Ratliff... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joe Posted January 21, 2006 Report Share Posted January 21, 2006 Those who dig this one may care to check out this earlier McNeil release on Steeplechase Fortuity Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ghost of miles Posted March 7, 2006 Report Share Posted March 7, 2006 Thanks for the rec, Joe--I came across that one recently while reorganizing the jazz library here at the station. I do like the newest one too, quite a lot... just played "A Time to Go" on the air. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stereojack Posted March 8, 2006 Report Share Posted March 8, 2006 This is a fine record - contemporary and classic. Once again, I am very impressed with Matt Wilson, who I heard many times when he was in Charlie Kohlhase's band. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Randy Twizzle Posted March 8, 2006 Report Share Posted March 8, 2006 I know it's a NYT thing, but please Ratliff, the formalities get annoying. They can be quite amusing. Here's an excerpt from a classic 1978 John Rockwell review. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mikeweil Posted March 8, 2006 Report Share Posted March 8, 2006 I have one of McNeil's SteepleChase LPs - remember it was pretty good. With Matt Wilson on hand, this sounds very interesting ..... Isn't Allan Chase married to singer Dominique Eade? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stereojack Posted March 8, 2006 Report Share Posted March 8, 2006 Isn't Allan Chase married to singer Dominique Eade? Yes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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