I received a fascinating CD as a present for my birthday over the weekend and , having given the disc a good spin over the last few days, feel compelled to share my enthusiasm on this board. The title of the record is simply called "III" and was released by Criss-Cross, a label I had hitherto not particularly appreciated.
The record in question is by a young, American tenor player called "Walter Smith III" who I believe is still in his twenties as are all the other band members other than pianisr Jason Moran and drummer , Eric Harland. Joe Sanders, the bassist with Gerald Clayton's trio fleshes out the rhythm section. Alto player Logan Richardson also crops up on one track which isn't really sufficient to show how impressive he is too - it is more of a cameo appearance. Whilst the tenor player alone is sufficiently impressive to merit attention, the star attraction for me is the trumpet player Ambrose Akinmusire. I saw his last year with an all-star group led by Michel Portal and was impressed then but this record lets you get to grips with what his playing is all about with the benefit of repeated listening.
The liner notes includes mention of the influence of Andrew Hill and Sam Rivers and the full line up certainly suggests the classic "Our thing" disc made by Joe Henderson in the 1960's. Smith's playing is fully formed and the rhythm section is terrific, especially Eric Harland whose drumming holds the whole ensemble together and drives the horns. However, the trumpet playing is absolutely incredible and Akinmusire is probably the only player I have heard who is definately taking his cues from the almost un-trumpet like approach of Kenny Dorham. Small wonder that he is attracting so much attention in the States! His playing owes a lot to Dorham's sound but , with the advantage of 50 years of jazz development, the technique fizzes in a fashion that is far more contemporary. He is a far more unorthodox player than someone like Roy Hargrove but firmly rooted in jazz tradition as opposed to Improv. Akinmusire almost treats the trumpet like a saxophone in the way that he executes his lines - he is a breath of fresh air in my opinion.
The only downside is that the compositions are not especially memorable even if some of the convoluted themes are under-pinned by a sinuous groove. "Moran-ish" is the pick of the bunch but once this group actually starts to blow, it is the quality of the soloing that grabs the ears. What is good is that this record has none of the trappings that a major label might have insisted upon so that the groups largely holds it's own identity. (The exceptions being a duo with Moran, a bass , tenor drums trio and the quinetet with Richardson.) The playing time is generous as well. Staggering that this is only Smith's third disc but all of these newcomers (Richardson, Akinmisure, Sanders, Smith) have very impressive CV's. Fascinating to read that Jason Moran has acted as a mentor to the likes of Smith too.
For me, this disc promises a lot for the future and definately something that Calum , Bluesnik and especially Jazzrook will want to track down. A quality album and one of the best of the year so far along with the Lovano "Bird " ablum.
The record in question is by a young, American tenor player called "Walter Smith III" who I believe is still in his twenties as are all the other band members other than pianisr Jason Moran and drummer , Eric Harland. Joe Sanders, the bassist with Gerald Clayton's trio fleshes out the rhythm section. Alto player Logan Richardson also crops up on one track which isn't really sufficient to show how impressive he is too - it is more of a cameo appearance. Whilst the tenor player alone is sufficiently impressive to merit attention, the star attraction for me is the trumpet player Ambrose Akinmusire. I saw his last year with an all-star group led by Michel Portal and was impressed then but this record lets you get to grips with what his playing is all about with the benefit of repeated listening.
The liner notes includes mention of the influence of Andrew Hill and Sam Rivers and the full line up certainly suggests the classic "Our thing" disc made by Joe Henderson in the 1960's. Smith's playing is fully formed and the rhythm section is terrific, especially Eric Harland whose drumming holds the whole ensemble together and drives the horns. However, the trumpet playing is absolutely incredible and Akinmusire is probably the only player I have heard who is definately taking his cues from the almost un-trumpet like approach of Kenny Dorham. Small wonder that he is attracting so much attention in the States! His playing owes a lot to Dorham's sound but , with the advantage of 50 years of jazz development, the technique fizzes in a fashion that is far more contemporary. He is a far more unorthodox player than someone like Roy Hargrove but firmly rooted in jazz tradition as opposed to Improv. Akinmusire almost treats the trumpet like a saxophone in the way that he executes his lines - he is a breath of fresh air in my opinion.
The only downside is that the compositions are not especially memorable even if some of the convoluted themes are under-pinned by a sinuous groove. "Moran-ish" is the pick of the bunch but once this group actually starts to blow, it is the quality of the soloing that grabs the ears. What is good is that this record has none of the trappings that a major label might have insisted upon so that the groups largely holds it's own identity. (The exceptions being a duo with Moran, a bass , tenor drums trio and the quinetet with Richardson.) The playing time is generous as well. Staggering that this is only Smith's third disc but all of these newcomers (Richardson, Akinmisure, Sanders, Smith) have very impressive CV's. Fascinating to read that Jason Moran has acted as a mentor to the likes of Smith too.
For me, this disc promises a lot for the future and definately something that Calum , Bluesnik and especially Jazzrook will want to track down. A quality album and one of the best of the year so far along with the Lovano "Bird " ablum.
Comment