Handsomefortune
I agree about Motian's later work being of much more interest than the earlier stuff. The perceived notion of the 1980's being a period of conservatism is not entirely correct and I think his trio was instrumental in bringing something very different to jazz. Paul Motian's drumming was something that fascinated me from the very beginning as it seemed so radical from the Hard Bop approach favoured by the likes of Jeff "Tain" Watts who I also enjoyed at the time. For me, Motian was probably the most interesting drummer working in that decade along with Jack DeJohnette and I can remember being extremely excited at the time that there were musicians who seemed to be able produce an incredible amount of energy whilst the underlying solo / harmony instruments might be playing at a slower tempo. On the Standards Vol 2 there ae versions of "I got rhythm" and "Nice work if you csn get it" where he demonstrates that he could alway drum in a very straight ahead, almost swing-style feel. The PM trio demonstrates just how furtile jazz became in the 30-odd years since the early 80's.
The trio is, in my estimation, an absolutely classic jazz group. Lovano is a musician who can play in a romantic style and then rip into some pretty outside solos whereas I felt that Frisell's guitar was used to anchor the bass notes to give the trio a degree of depth and also blend with the tenor to produce a wonderfully warm sound. They are three odd-shaped components of a very satisfying whole . On the Monk album, there are moments where the music has an almost off-kilter corniness and they had the effect of making melodies seem even more hummable. The standard albums offer a nice counter-point to Jarrett's frequently excellent work in this idiom too.
Surprised no one has put as shout in for "Notes" which was the duo album Paul Moptian made with Paul Bley. Always wished I had snapped that one up and regret never acquiring this disc. Paul Bley is another figure deserving a library and probably the most under-rated pianist in the history of jazz.
I agree about Motian's later work being of much more interest than the earlier stuff. The perceived notion of the 1980's being a period of conservatism is not entirely correct and I think his trio was instrumental in bringing something very different to jazz. Paul Motian's drumming was something that fascinated me from the very beginning as it seemed so radical from the Hard Bop approach favoured by the likes of Jeff "Tain" Watts who I also enjoyed at the time. For me, Motian was probably the most interesting drummer working in that decade along with Jack DeJohnette and I can remember being extremely excited at the time that there were musicians who seemed to be able produce an incredible amount of energy whilst the underlying solo / harmony instruments might be playing at a slower tempo. On the Standards Vol 2 there ae versions of "I got rhythm" and "Nice work if you csn get it" where he demonstrates that he could alway drum in a very straight ahead, almost swing-style feel. The PM trio demonstrates just how furtile jazz became in the 30-odd years since the early 80's.
The trio is, in my estimation, an absolutely classic jazz group. Lovano is a musician who can play in a romantic style and then rip into some pretty outside solos whereas I felt that Frisell's guitar was used to anchor the bass notes to give the trio a degree of depth and also blend with the tenor to produce a wonderfully warm sound. They are three odd-shaped components of a very satisfying whole . On the Monk album, there are moments where the music has an almost off-kilter corniness and they had the effect of making melodies seem even more hummable. The standard albums offer a nice counter-point to Jarrett's frequently excellent work in this idiom too.
Surprised no one has put as shout in for "Notes" which was the duo album Paul Moptian made with Paul Bley. Always wished I had snapped that one up and regret never acquiring this disc. Paul Bley is another figure deserving a library and probably the most under-rated pianist in the history of jazz.
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