NBC Nightly News: David S. Ware

Photo © Mephisto

NBC News reporter Alex Presha explores saxophonist David S. Ware’s bout with kidney disease, his connection with kidney donor Laura Mehr and his triumphant return to performing in this Web-only news story on the NBC Nightly News Web site.

Paris Transatlantic: Darius Jones Trio + Joe Morris Quartet

Clifford Allen reviews the two latest AUM Fidelity releases, the Darius Jones Trio’s Man’ish Boy (A Raw & Beautiful Thing) and the Joe Morris Quartet’s Today On Earth, in the Autumn 2009 edition of Paris Transatlantic.

“Darius Jones’ art has an incredible purity and directness—what Cooper-Moore has called a ‘yes, sir’ quality,” Allen explains. “It’s a quality he shares with Sonny Simmons, Marion Brown and Charles Tyler, but the real connection is the respect instilled through absorbing the tradition and living history of musicianship.”

In his review of Today On Earth, Allen writes, “The Joe Morris Quartet plumbs the depths of postbop, building off the skewed rapport between [Jim] Hobbs and Morris: the guitarist’s flinty plucking and behind-the-beat chords are the left hand to the altoist’s acrid right. By now Morris’s longtime working group has established a language wholly its own, an ideal springboard for spindly inversions and lean fantasias.”

Boston Phoenix: Darius Jones Trio At Outpost 186

Photo by Joel Veak

Jon Garelick reviews the Darius Jones Trio’s October 19th CD release concert at Outpost 186 in this week’s issue of the Boston Phoenix. The group, which features alto saxophonist/composer Darius Jones, multi-instrumentalist Cooper-Moore and drummer Rakalam Bob Moses, was in town celebrating Jones’ recorded debut as a bandleader, Man’ish Boy (A Raw & Beautiful Thing) on AUM Fidelity.

“To call Darius Jones’s music avant-garde seems almost beside the point,” Garelick writes. “In its way, it’s older than old—it’s ancient. Jones likes churchy old blues, boogie-woogie, and the kind of folkish tunes that Albert Ayler used to write. He also shares Ayler’s moaning, wide-vibrato tone, if not the sainted saxophonist’s taste for single-minded, iron-jawed shrieking. But Jones has his own dignified way of testifying—big, long tones that patiently build to skirling figures and ululating shouts.”

The Blogosphere Hearts Joe Morris

Excerpts from recent blog reviews of the Joe Morris Quartet’s Today On Earth (AUM Fidelity):

“The music, performed by Morris (guitar), Jim Hobbs (alto saxophone), Timo Shanko (bass) and Luther Gray (drums), holds up quite impressively under repeated listenings. The tracks are fairly long (4 over 10 minutes and only 1 under 7), but several of them move so gracefully (‘Observer’, ‘Ashes’) it’s easy to get lost in the sonic world the quartet creates. It’s been over 3 decades since Joe Morris first came to critical notice and he continues to grow as a composer and musician, creating challenging music for open minds.”
—Richard Kamins, Hartford Courant’s See! Hear!

“Joe Morris is having one of them crazy years. Nothing can seem to stop him, as he is releasing one CD after another. The latest—and best!—one is this studio session with his quartet. One of the best jazz albums of 2009.”
—François Couture, Monsieur Delire

“Four of the seven tracks on Today On Earth clock in at 10 or 11 minutes, and all of that time is well spent. Of his recent releases, this album is one of the best place to start (behind the Flow Trio), since its places his adventurous improvisational chops in a setting that makes them stand out even more.”
—Mike Shanley, shanleyonmusic

“…the main strength of the album is the truly wonderful compositions, which are refined, carefully structured, compelling and beautifully performed…here [Morris’] playing is much closer to the traditional jazz guitar, and I must say, it suits him well. And the band is absolutely stunning, in its pretenseless, unassuming playing, yet delivering a rare level of combined accuracy of tone and interaction, giving space, dialoguing well, giving the right emphasis at the right time, and adding loads of emotional depth: truly great. But as said, the real treat are the compositions, with themes like ‘Animal’ or ‘Observer’ that will keep ringing in your head long after you’ve stopped listening to the music.”
—Stef Gijssels, Free Jazz

Firehouse 12 To Present The Darius Jones Trio November 20th

Photo by John Sharpe

On Friday, November 20th, New Haven’s Firehouse 12 will present a two-set celebration of New York-based alto saxophonist/composer Darius Jones‘ long-awaited debut CD, Man’ish Boy (A Raw & Beautiful Thing) (AUM Fidelity). Described by Jones as “a sonic tone poem about me and my life growing up in the South,” the record draws on such early influences as his Jamaican father’s love of reggae, the revelatory vocal music of the church and countless hours of listening to everything from classical to rock on the radio. Recently heralded as “a new voice poised to receive widespread acclaim” (Troy Collins, AllAboutJazz.com), Jones brings this diverse and passionate music to life with his mentors, the eminent master musicians Cooper-Moore (piano and diddley-bo) and Rakalam Bob Moses (drums).

“On Man’ish Boy,” writes PointofDeparture.org’s Ed Hazell, “alto saxophonist Darius Jones delivers one of the most impressive debuts in recent memory, displaying a remarkably well-developed concept and individual sound. Jones has a big, fleshy, lived-in tone, with a vibrato that owes as much to Johnny Hodges as it does to Albert Ayler. It’s defiant, vulnerable, proud, and weary; there is laughter and sobbing in it.” Jason Crane, host of The Jazz Session and columnist at PopDose.com, adds, “For his debut statement, 31-year-old Jones wanted to tell his story. To talk about what it means to be poor and black and struggling and intelligent in this day and age. Jones has fit all that and more into an incredible recording that will make you sing, make you weep and make you marvel.”

Jones came to New York from his native Virginia in 2005 and has since displayed his distinctive musical voice in a wide variety of genres. Pianist/composer Matthew Shipp writes, “He is one of those rare talents that when you first hear him you scratch your head, because it’s all there—the concept, the virtuosity, a real improvisational mind. I feel really good about the future of this music knowing that a real and pure talent like Darius exists.” In addition to his own trio, Jones actively performs with Lewis Barnes’ Hampton Roads, the Cooper-Moore Trio, William Hooker’s Bliss (East), Little Women, Mike Pride’s From Bacteria to Boys and Mara Rosenbloom’s Arrival Quartet. He is also a teacher and producer of records by Korean jazz vocalist Sunny Kim and country-folk artist Mary Bragg. Learn more at http://www.myspace.com/blackdajones

2009 Fall Jazz Series Schedule:

09/18 :: Brandon Ross & Blazing Beauty
09/25 :: Matt Wilson Quartet
10/02 :: Mauger: Rudresh Mahanthappa/Mark Dresser/Gerry Hemingway
10/09 :: Steve Lehman Trio
10/16 :: Gretchen Parlato Band
10/23 :: Whirrr! The Music of Jimmy Giuffre
10/30 :: Taylor Eigsti Trio
11/06 :: ODE: Larry Ochs/Trevor Dunn/Lisle Ellis/Michael Sarin
11/13 :: The Peter Evans Quartet
11/20 :: Darius Jones Trio
12/04 :: Mary Halvorson Quintet
12/11 :: Amy Cervini Quartet
12/18 :: Daniel Levin Trio

Tickets and more information available at:
http://firehouse12.com/performance_space_calendar.asp

AUM Fidelity To Kick-off 2010 With The Eri Yamamoto Trio

On January 12th, AUM Fidelity will kick-off its 2010 release schedule with the Eri Yamamoto Trio’s In Each Day, Something Good (AUM059). The record, pianist/composer Eri Yamamoto’s third recording for the label under her own name, follows 2008’s Redwoods (AUM049), which earned her longstanding New York-based trio, and its distinctive music, international acclaim. In Each Day, Something Good finds the group, which also features bassist David Ambrosio and drummer Ikuo Takeuchi, presenting a new collection of 10 original compositions.

“On this album,” writes Ms. Yamamoto in the liner notes, “half of the songs I composed through capturing some of my experiences living in New York City since 1995, and also through traveling within many countries to perform. I composed the other songs as a soundtrack to the black and white silent movie, I Was Born, But… by director Yasujiro Ozu. While Ozu’s film is serious and sometimes heartbreaking, it also has lightness and humor. Even though this film was made more than 75 years ago, we can still gain from it ideas and hope for dealing with the hard times our modern world is facing. We have been performing this suite of compositions along with screenings of the film.”

Critics have called Ms. Yamamoto’s past work on AUM Fidelity, which also includes her duos collection Duologue (AUM048) and a sidewoman role on William Parker’s Raining On The Moon (AUM043), “expressively versatile” (Philip Clark, The Wire), “a succession of distinct pleasures” (Michael Coyle, Cadence) and “a little dangerous and a whole lot lovely” (Will Layman, PopMatters.com). “Eri Yamamoto’s pianism is quietly dignified and her approach to music making exudes introspection and beauty,” writes AllAboutJazz-New York’s Marc Medwin. “Each note seems sculpted out of the silence surrounding it.”

AllMusic.com’s Michael G. Nastos adds, “Eri Yamamoto’s contemporary jazz style has not only come of age, but has fully blossomed, flowered, and is as beautiful as any mature rose. This trio recording—with veteran bassist David Ambrosio and longtime drummer Ikuo Takeuchi—shows Yamamoto’s fluid melodic elements, sprawling vistas of color, and her innate common sense in stringing together lines of passion and cleanliness. While remaining in a modern vein, her piano style reflects classical training, post-bop sensibilities, and progressive ideals. An excellent trio recording that stands apart from most others with similar instrumentation, Redwoods deserves a close listen for every smart jazz piano fan.”

Trained in the classical tradition since the age of three, Ms. Yamamoto first heard a jazz piano trio perform live by chance during a visit to New York from her native Japan in 1995. Prior to that fateful encounter with noted pianist Tommy Flanagan, she had never studied or performed jazz. Four years later she burst on to the New York scene at the now defunct Avenue B Social Club in the East Village after completing her studies at New School University’s prestigious jazz program with legendary bassist Reggie Workman among others.

Her 14 year-old flagship ensemble, the Eri Yamamoto Trio, has since become a New York jazz institution thanks to its nearly decade-long residency at the historic Greenwich Village jazz venue, Arthur’s Tavern. The group currently performs on Thursday, Friday and Saturday nights, offering what Time Out New York calls “the place to hear all the new ideas brewing in an already compositionally agile mind.” The trio has also performed in various other cities around the world, including tours of Italy, Japan, Spain and U.K. In Each Day, Something Good is the band’s sixth recording. Learn more at http://eriyamamoto.com

Darius Jones Trio x 2 Tonight

Photo by John Sharpe

Not since Phil Collins did it at Live Aid has a musician played concerts on both sides of the Atlantic in a single day*, but alto saxophonist Darius Jones will come close tonight when his trio performs live at Outpost 186 in Cambridge, MA on the same night BBC 3’s Jazz on 3 presents its set from this summer’s Vision Festival 14.

The group, which just wowed the audience at AUM Fidelity’s all-star artist showcase at Abrons Arts Center on Thursday night, is celebrating the release of Jones’ long-awaited debut as a leader, Man’ish Boy (A Raw & Beautiful Thing).

Learn more about Jones, his work in this band with mentors Cooper-Moore and Rakalam Bob Moses, and the sources of his music in an extended interview with Jason Crane on last Friday’s episode of The Jazz Session.

* This may or may not be true.

David S. Ware In The New York Times

Photo by Joshua Bright for The New York Times

In today’s New York Times, Susan Dominus tells the story of eminent saxophonist David S. Ware’s recent kidney transplant, his relationship with donor Laura Mehr and his triumphant return to performing this past Thursday night.

Interviewing Joe Morris

Photo by Dylan Morris

It’s Joe Morris‘ world and we’re just working in it. Or at least that’s what you might think given the guitarist/bassist’s prolific output these days, which includes appearances on nearly two dozen recordings since the beginning of 2008.

We’re pleased to say that his recent efforts as a leader-co-leader, not to mention his sideman work on David S. Ware’s latest recording, Shakti, for AUM Fidelity have been among his most well-received of the bunch.

Three new interviews with Morris were posted this week exploring his career, and the latest Joe Morris Quartet recording, Today On Earth, from different angles. Please check them out at le son du grisli, The Jazz Session and Spinner.com

AUM Fidelity Artist Showcase Tomorrow Night

David S. Ware, William Parker and Darius Jones

Tomorrow night at Abrons Arts Center in New York, AUM Fidelity will celebrate three notable events on one stage: the release of alto saxophonist Darius Jones‘ debut recording as a bandleader, eminent saxophonist David S. Ware’s triumphant return to performing after a highly publicized kidney transplant in May, and the first performance of bassist William Parker’s Little Huey Creative Music Orchestra in more than four years.

Jones, the label’s most recent signing, will be performing in support of his October 13th release, Man’ish Boy (A Raw & Beautiful Thing) (AUM057). Ware, who unveiled his latest all-star quartet on January’s Shakti (AUM052), before being temporarily sidelined by an urgent and successful search for a kidney donor, will mark his 50th anniversary playing saxophone with a special solo performance. Parker’s Little Huey Creative Music Orchestra, last heard in New York at Vision Festival X in 2005, will present the world premiere of a new composition entitled, “Subsequent Illumination Inscriptions/Light Cottage”, dedicated to George Russell.

Doors open at 7:30 and the music begins at 8:00 p.m. Tickets are still available in advance and at the door (as space allows).