Joe Lovano Trio Tapestry - Our Daily Bread

May 4, 2023

Label: ECM Records, 2023

Personnel - Joe Lovano: tenor saxophone, tarogato, gongs; Marilyn Crispell: piano; Carmen Castaldi: drums, gong, temple bells.

Our Daily Bread is the third chapter in Trio Tapestry’s discography. Led by the extraordinary saxophonist Joe Lovano, who remains the sole composer for this spiritual musical endeavor, the trio is completed by the resourceful pianist Marilyn Crispell and the enigmatic drummer Carmen Castaldi. They give the best expression to eight new selections that advocate the same freedom and abandonment of those presented in former recordings.

“All Twelve” evolves in a 12-tone context with perspicuity in the interplay. I feel it as a dawning peace, whose rubato manner enhances the celestial latitude that defines Lovano’s originals. That said, you can still find piano and saxophone lines in tandem near completion. The following track, “Grace Notes” is an example of spiritual elevation and force in the style of Coltrane. There’s no bass in this project but Crispell provides a hypnotic low-pitched rumination with her left hand, ideal for Lovano’s blistering work out on tarogato. The instrument’s special tone and the improviser’s prayerful intonations make this magnificent modal burner the most expansive on the album. It ends as it started, with Castaldi offering gentle drumming.

“Le Petit Opportun” is a beautiful ballad delivered as a sax-piano duet. It is harmonically palpable and melodically compelling, just like the gracious title track, where intimate lyricism appears in every little touch by the threesome.

If the trio takes the title “The Power of Three” literally by also providing triplets while exploring within a circumspect mood in tempo rubato, then “Crystal Ball” passes a pastoral air loosened up by free and airy drumming. There’s a solo saxophone tribute to the late bassist Charlie Haden, with whom Lovano played in the last phase of his Liberation Music Orchestra and in Paul Motian’s On Broadway standards project.

Although not as strong as in their two previous outings, Trio Tapestry’s jazz spirituality is crafted with nice details.

Favorite Tracks:
02 - Grace Notes ► 04 - Our Daily Bread ► 07 - Rhythm Spirit

Jakob Bro / Joe Lovano - Once Around the Room

November 2, 2022

Label: ECM Records, 2022

Personnel - Joe Lovano: tenor saxophone, tarogato; Jakob Bro: guitar; Thomas Morgan: double bass; Larry Grenadier: double bass; Anders Christensen: electric bass; Joey Baron: drums; Jorge Rossy: drums.

This marvelous album put together by two amazing musicians, the American saxophonist Joe Lovano and the Danish guitarist Jakob Bro, is a homage to the late drummer Paul Motian. The latter’s influence and mannerism are dissolved over six pieces - two by each co-leader, one collective improvisation, and one iconic number from the drummer - devised with a highly personal stamp and nearly telepathic interplay. For this project made in Copenhagen, Lovano and Bro convened an unconventional group with three bassists (Thomas Morgan, Larry Grenadier and Anders Christensen) and two drummers (Joey Baron, Jorge Rossy).

Lovano’s “As It Should Be” opens the album with an entrancing mood via the mind bending combination of dawning calm and a spiritual heft that is not completely devoid of inquiries and challenges. The piece blossoms with a coruscating rhythm, distorted guitar chords and long notes that echo with depth, rambling pass pedaling, and searching tenor lines that fly to the infinite and return. Both drummers end this piece with a similar dynamism as they start off “Drum Music”, a Motian composition where the eccentric sax/guitar coalition brings its authoritative melody to the fore. Employing distortion, Bro puts an experimental spin on it, inspiring Lovano to pour out a few volcanic eruptions with both piercing and deep sounds.

“For the Love of Paul”, another product of Lovano’s mind, is marked by a clearly defined theme, producing a slight yet elastic tension over the unfussy tapestry. The co-leaders, who played together for the first time in 2009, are absolutely phenomenal here, opting for a stream of modern creative ideas. With restless energy, the saxist hooks up avant-garde and post-bop elements over the rippling currents provided by the basses and the spacious, effect-drenched guitar of his associate. It also incorporates a fine dialogue between bass players before the reinstatement of the theme.

Bro’s two cuts are etched with restrained intensity, balancing brain and heart: “Song to an Old Friend” is a heavenly tone poem delivered with some pathos and ravishing lyricism, whereas “Pause” ends up the proceedings in laid-back contemplation. On top of all that, the album includes a collective improvisation - aptly titled “Sound Creation” - with looped electronics, non-static drum activity, and the cathartic dances and unpredictable obliques of Lovano on tarogato (Eastern European woodwind instrument).

Once Around the Room has to be made a priority, and as an inspired work of rare talents, you’ll want to spin it over and over again.

Favorite Tracks:
01 - As it Should Be ► 03- For the Love of Paul ► 04 - Song to an Old Friend ► 05 - Drum Music

Joe Lovano & Dave Douglas' Sound Prints - Other Worlds

April 29, 2021

Label: Greenleaf Music, 2021

Personnel - Joe Lovano: tenor saxophone; Dave Douglas: trumpet; Lawrence Fields: piano; Linda May Han Oh: bass; Joey Baron: drums

Sound Prints, the all-star quintet spearheaded by the titanic tenor saxophonist Joe Lovano and the formidable trumpeter Dave Douglas, releases its third full-length album, this time featuring only original compositions by the leaders but still inspired by the musical temperament and style of the legendary saxophonist Wayne Shorter. However, exploring such an impactful legacy takes the two composers to new places in the company of a multi-generational trio of rhythmic backers and accomplished soloists, namely pianist Lawrence Fields, bassist Linda May Han Oh and veteran drummer Joey Baron.

“Space Exploration”, the first part of Lovano’s Other Worlds Suite, first spins with spiritual consciousness and then allures our sonic palate with crisp unisons that leave room for Baron’s stable drum fills. The bass initiates a swinging route that serves the excellence of Lovano’s vertiginous ins and outs, just before Oh starts off a line of thought herself. Her impressive bass work is put on halt immediately after, when Douglas rides high on top of an adept accompaniment provided by piano and drums. Concluding the series of improvisations, Lawrence dovetails whirling figures and works on classical-inspired movements that incessantly land in the right places.

The ensemble often passes the idea of free-form exploration but never really loses the sense of structure. That’s evident in pieces touching the borders of post-bop and avant-garde, like Douglas’ “Life On Earth”, a tour-de-force that incorporates dashes of funk, bendable horn stretches, and a modal property that easily recalls the Miles Davis Quintet from the 1960’s. Moreover, the name Miles in the title of Lovano’s “Sky Miles” might not have been by chance; it’s a mighty jab into ingenious post-bop that also falls into the Shorter/Davis’ bag.

“The Flight”, the third movement of Lovano’s above-named suite (nonsequential on the album’s track list), teems with playful lyricism and smoldering horn exchanges that form a kaleidoscopic sheet of sound. It all plays out under a springy, waltzing articulation.

Douglas’ fascination for the ancient past and its major figures is bespoke in two of his pieces: “Antiquity to Outer Space”, whose modern creative traits are shaded with wafts of chamber music, and “Pythagoras”, a polyrhythmic stunner in which we find the musicians pushing and prodding each other in an effort to go beyond themselves.

Baron’s brushed textures and sizzling cymbals propel “Manitou” with the help of a coruscating bass churn. This is a ballad in six that produces plenty of melody via the elegant dance between muted trumpet and tenor saxophone.

There’s a relaxed assurance to the entire set that stems from the experience of the collective. The musicianship involved here is outstanding, resulting in a work of great impact that deserves enthusiastic commendation.

Favorite Tracks:
01 - Space Exploration ► 03 - Life On Earth ► 06 - The Flight

Joe Lovano's Trio Tapestry - Garden of Expression

January 26, 2021

Label: ECM Records, 2021

Personnel - Joe Lovano: tenor and soprano saxophones, tarogato; Marilyn Crispell: piano; Carmen Castaldi: drums.

In the second installment of the Trio Tapestry, Garden of Expression, the leading saxophonist Joe Lovano wields his horn with tact, engraving profound melodies on the understructures created by his sterling associates, the pianist Marilyn Crispell and the drummer Carmen Castaldi. The album comprises eight Lovano compositions, most of them written on the road, which whir with splendorous lyricism and spirituality.

Dipped in reflection, “Chapel Song” joins these shimmering tenor melodies with the dreamy quality of Crispell’s piano work and the selective drum chops of Castaldi. This number was the product of Lovano’s listening to an organ playing in a Viennese church. A quiet illumination comes from the trio’s musical affinity and that warm feel is seamlessly passed to “Night Creatures”, a meditative exercise in which Lovano’s expressive playing becomes affectingly emotional. He’s well supported by cymbal legato and other percussive subtleties as well as deep silences. This serene, free-flowing nature often recalls the work of drummer Paul Motian.

If “The Sacred Way” comes up with a new way of playing modal jazz, more delicate and laid-back than ever, then the title track, “Garden of Expression”, draws harmonic mystery from every passage. Melodically poignant at first, this piece evolves into brisk weavings of melodic saxophone that immediately made me think of Charles Lloyd. The focused piano of Crispell is overshadowed by Castaldi’s effusive drumming here, while Lovano plays gongs in the last section. The trio’s deep musicality is on full display.

Under the drummer's steady tapestry, “Dream On That” kicks in with a lovely piano declaration to which the saxophone responds assertively. The convergence of the two instruments ultimately occurs, and a finely articulated theme, mixing blithe post-bop and Monk angularity, is delivered with unbending belief.

The album closes with “Zen Like”, a soaring piece where the trio combines gongs and cymbals, plucked piano strings and low pedals, and adds horn laments for the resulting chemistry.

The open music of Trio Tapestry casts a mesmerizing spell, shining with colors that, being less flashy than most of the modern genres, are everlasting and opalescent.

Favorite Tracks:
02 - Night Creatures ► 04 - Garden of Expression ► 07 - Dream On That

Marcin Wasilewski Trio with Joe Lovano - Arctic Riff

June 22, 2020

Label: ECM Records, 2020

Personnel - Marcin Wasilewski: piano; Joe Lovano: tenor saxophone; Slawomir Kurkiewicz: bass; Michal Miskiewicz: drums.

Polish pianist Marcin Wasilewski augments his crisply articulate piano trio - featuring bassist Slawomir Kurkiewicz and drummer Michal Miskiewicz - with the addition of great American saxophonist Joe Lovano, who populates Arctic Riff with his burnished saxophone literacy. The album comprises 11 pieces - four by Wasilewski, one by Lovano, four collective improvisations, and one by pianist Carla Bley, which makes a double appearance with the inclusion of an alternate take. The composition in question is “Vashkar”, which first saw the light of day in 1963, when it was included on Paul Bley’s trio album Footloose. The quartet’s reading admits conspicuous turbulence by the time that Wasilewski speaks and also exposes great saxophone work over a logical bass-drums association. The tune’s variation is cooked with the same passion and subtly atmospheric tones, but relatively different flavors.

“Glimmer of Hope”, a Wasilewski ballad, kicks off the record by sailing in shimmering, streamlined, slow-moving waters. Everything is brought into a collective harmony, yet the saxophone melodies bring an exceptional lyrical warmth to the music of the trio. The pianist also penned two other ballads: “Old Hat”, which closes out the album, and “Fading Sorrow”, which showcases his taste for beautiful and relaxing melodies over functional, sensitive chords. Impossible not to notice the deeply felt bass solo that comes as lucid in the phraseology as it sounds rich in tone.

Kurkiewicz also has the spotlight for a limited period of time on “Arco”, an enigmatic collective improvisation where Lovano steals the show by employing impressive multiphonics. However, “Cadenza” is my first choice among the extemporaneous pieces. Clocking in at nine minutes, this number emerges with brushed drums, wandering bass itineraries and ruminative saxophone. Departing from the lower registers, nimble piano movements expand, integrating with the other instruments to form cohesive sonic landscapes whose topographies range from meditative to avant-garde.

Wasilewski’s “L’Amour Fou” and Lovano’s “On the Other Side” stand out as the most unreserved selections in the program. The former, boasting a dancing quality in the head that exceeds the conventional swinging flow, thrive with ingenious solos from piano, sax and drums; the latter piece, on its side, denotes clever communicative exchanges and passes through different configurations, with Lovano citing Monk’s “Played Twice” in a sweeping solo that crosses the hard-swinging accompaniment provided by bass and drums.

Even when exploring boundlessly, the quartet embraces a fluid style leavened by a wonderful sense of space. As a key to our contentment, the sounds are not just meticulous but also consistently surprising.

Favorite Tracks:
03 - Cadenza ► 04 - Fading Sorrow ► 07 - L’Amour Fou

Enrico Rava / Joe Lovano - Roma

August 27, 2019

Label: ECM Records, 2019

Personnel - Enrico Rava: trumpet; Joe Lovano: tenor saxophone, tarogato; Giovanni Guidi: piano; Dezron Douglas: double bass; Gerald Cleaver: drums.

Italian trumpeter Enrico Rava and American saxophonist Joe Lovano, two formidable improvisatory forces and master impressionists, have been determinant in the evolution of jazz as a style. However, their connection with the German-based record label ECM occurred in different time periods. Whereas the trumpeter made his debut in 1975 with the masterpiece The Pilgrim and the Stars, the saxophonist only recently brought his ample musical charms to the cited imprint with the co-led project Trio Tapestry.

They now record together for the first time, forming an implacable bond and co-leading a corkscrewing Italian-American quintet whose remaining members belong to a younger generation and come from distinct backgrounds - Italian pianist Giovanni Guidi has been Rava’s faithful collaborator for many years, bringing his modern creative style to the table; American bassist Dezron Douglas has demonstrated a voracious appetite for hybrid styles where he typically bridges the worlds of jazz, funk, and soul; and the well-versed Brooklyn-based drummer Gerald Cleaver is frequently spotted in avant-jazz settings.

The five tracks on this album were recorded live at the Auditorium Parco Della Musica, Rome, with the group kicking things off with two beautiful Rava compositions. The opener, “Interiors” (retrieved from the 2009 album New York Days), starts as a sluggish waltz guided by sparse piano, earth-toned bass notes, and brushed snare drum. The melody is first introduced by Lovano and the music becomes wondrously polyphonous after Rava steps in. The trumpeter takes it to an emotional peak, driving us through peaks and valleys while boasting his enormous pitch range and dauntless rhythmic acrobatics. Though, he never eschews that incredibly melodic quality that defines his style. An exquisite bolero ambiance takes form as Guidi begins to talk, smooth and reserved at first, and then confident and fluid. The second piece is the old “Secrets” (included in the 1987 album of the same name), a breezy 4/4 cruise where the two frontmen cut loose with sharp statements. Rava's balance between tension and relaxation draws instinctive reactions from Cleaver, while Lovano shows off his dazzling post-bop language with a preference for the lower and middle registers.

The quintet swings hard and true on Lovano’s “Fort Worth” (a funky 24-bar blues originally included in the 1992 album From The Soul), which gets underway with an anxious bass pedal in tandem with a ride cymbal continuum. The saxophonist simply knocks us out in his tradeoffs with Rava. The lancinating propulsion of his phrasing is what drives this high-flying blowing jam into a heated climax.

Lovano lends another two compositions to the project: the more abstract and bemused “Divine Timing”, a new composition, and the innocuous “Drum Song”, which opens an 18-minute medley that also comprises John Coltrane’s “Spiritual” and Harold Arlen’s ballad standard “Over The Rainbow”. This three-song aggregation induces an initial rubato feel processed with a conscientious bass proem, prayerful Hungarian tárogató lines, and the skittering motion of Cleaver, who builds tension around the toms and cymbals. It then changes to that Coltranean 3/4 modal aura filled with spiritual chants, before ending with Guidi’s benevolent solo rendering of the above-mentioned and million-times-played standard.

Rava and Lovano not only vouch for thrills that give you a good shake, but also search for spirituality with pathos and fervor.

Favorite Tracks:
01 - Interiors ► 03 - Fort Worth ► 05 - Drum Song / Spiritual / Over The Rainbow

Joe Lovano - Trio Tapestry

January 21, 2019

Label: ECM Records, 2019

Personnel: Joe Lovano: tenor saxophone; Marilyn Crispell: piano; Carmen Castaldi: drums.

Grammy-award winning composer/saxophonist Joe Lovano makes his debut on the ECM Records with Trio Tapestry, a new project that integrates the highly expressive pianism of Marilyn Crispell and the inspiring drumming of Carmen Castaldi. Adopting a democratic posture, the group has the pianist and the drummer contributing in an intense way to shape Lovano’s compositions into something uniquely intimate and beautiful.

The opener, “One Time In”, a one-on-one conversation between saxophone and percussion, bristles with deliberately prayerful melodies, unpredictable percussive trajectories, and bright gongs. It leads to the most enchanting piece on the record, “Seeds of Change”, which, gravitating with lamenting intonations, illuminates the world with the warm spiritual light it needs at the present time. Don’t be surprised if you get this positive, energetic current going down your spine as this song firstly caresses your ears and then touches your heart, transporting you to a heavenly dimension.

Crispell introduces “Razzle Dazzle” with pianistic reverie and a generous dash of abstraction. The feel is corroborated by the Motian-esque spaciousness of Castaldi’s brushwork along with the plaintive lines of Lovano.

“Sparkle Light” and “Rare And Beauty” exhibit sax and piano in close collaboration, whether in the form of unisons or complementing each other with intensely deep movements, frequent emitters of peacefulness. On the latter piece, the unison statements are a bit more energetic, but there’s still a propensity toward tranquility. Leisurely rhythmic flexibility often welcomes passionate individual statements. However, this is music with commitment and Castaldi’s unobtrusive drumming asserts that there is no space for egos here, only solidarity and integrity. He showcases his gong percussion on “Gong Episode” as well as on “Mystic”, a piece he occasionally agitates with mallets, yet prevailing the general state of musing.

By displaying contemplative virtues, the trio doesn’t resort to showing you everything they can do. What they do here is harder than showing off all their technique and musical prowess at once. These tunes fly and soar before penetrating into our minds. However, compositions like “Spirit Lake” - aesthetically assembled with arpeggiated tension, restless drumming, and emotionally blazing saxophone - and “The Smiling Dog” - the biting closing piece whose intensity expands via crafted rhythmic accents and the strong communicative presence of the artists - bring in many other colors, conjuring up avant-garde jazz routines that never cease to spiritualize and amaze.

The creativity and adaptability of Lovano and his peers stimulate Trio Tapestry to endlessly pique our interest with a lucent musicality from which we don’t want to be apart.

Favorite Tracks:
02 - Seeds of Change ► 08 - Rare Beauty ► 11 - The Smiling Dog

Joe Lovano & Dave Douglas' Sound Prints - Scandal

August 2, 2018

Label: Greenleaf Music, 2018

Personnel – Joe Lovano: tenor and soprano saxophones; Dave Douglas: trumpet; Lawrence Fields: piano; Linda May Han Ho: bass; Joey Baron: drums.

Dave Douglas and Joe Lovano, two incredible composers/arrangers and stalwarts in the art of playing trumpet and saxophone, respectively, co-lead the Wayne Shorter-inspired quintet Sound Prints, for which they composed original material. Their high caliber rhythm section - pianist Lawrence Fields, bassist Linda May Han Ho, and drummer Joey Baron - spends time creating intuitive bounces that would better serve the soloists while solidifying rapport. Scandal was released on Douglas' Greenleaf Music imprint and marks the band’s first studio session, following Sound Prints - Live at Monterey Jazz Festival, released on Blue Note Records in 2015.

The album’s opener is Douglas’ “Dream State”, a 5/4-metered piece whose magnificent groove underpins a pungent, gospel-inflected motif uttered with conjoint twin-like sympathy by the horn alliance. Subsequently, it becomes two separate lines that burst in a soulful combination of timbre and vocabulary. The trumpeter shows off his wide range and authority while the saxophonist engages in those inimitable, sinuous phrases that are as strapping as they are dizzying.

On Lovano’s bop-fueled “High Noon” and “The Corner Tavern”, the quintet dwells in a state of buoyant elegance. If the former swings uptempo, then the latter conquers with a calypso-like groove, featuring the horn players exchanging improvised lines with edgy moves and logic sequence. Han Ho and Fields also show their affirming soloing skills before re-entering the final theme section, while Baron edits his percussive jabs to wonderful moderation.

“Full Sun” and “Full Moon” are contrasting in tone and essence since the former, in opposition to the lyric, spacious, and quizzical latter, is an elated post-bop ride typically structured with flexible solos from bass, saxophone, and trumpet.

Shorter’s “Fee-Fi-Fo-Fum” and “JuJu” are equal parts inventive and reverent, and the band brings them back to life with very satisfying rhythmic ideas and melodic peculiarities. Shades of the honored saxophonist are also present on the beautiful title track, which adds some Miles and Coltrane to the mix, and also on the dreamy ballad “Ups and Downs”, both products of Douglas’ creative mind.

This is a great comeback from Sound Prints, whose effervescent and sagacious playing sounds pretty damn good.

Favorite Tracks:
01 - Dream State ► 02 - Full Sun ► 09 - Full Moon

Dave Liebman / Joe Lovano - Compassion: The Music of John Coltrane

May 2, 2017

Label/Year: Resonance Records, 2017

Lineup - Dave Liebman: saxophone, flute; Joe Lovano: saxophone; Phil Markowitz: piano; Ron McLure: bass; Billy Hart: drums.

dave-liebman-joe-lovano-compassion-coltrane

We couldn’t have asked for better! Two veterans and top-notch horn masters like Dave Liebman and Joe Lovano playing together the bright music of John Coltrane in the commemoration of his 50th anniversary on Resonance Records.

Regardless their different styles, approaches, and timbres, the co-leaders seamlessly adjust their eloquent phrasing and give a new life to these iconic pieces.
Compassion: The Music of John Coltrane features the striking duo accompanied by the also experienced Phil Markowitz on piano, Ron McLure on bass, and the great Billy Hart on drums.

“Locomotion”, an electrifying hard-bop tune first recorded in 1957 as part of the acclaimed album Blue Trane (Blue Note), immediately gets the band together for a ‘crazy motion’ as the title suggests. The vivacity that arises from the rhythm section’s coalition instigates Liebman and Lovano to draw vigorous and articulated melodic sequences full of oblique angles and action-reaction momentum.

The effervescence winds down for “Central Park West/Dear Lord”, a smooth medley where Lovano controls the first part with soulful enthusiasm while Liebman is in charge of finding benevolent melodies and take them to the second, as an ode to the Creator.

The mood changes once more on “Olé”, a lavish modal piece that takes us to Spanish traditions, in the present case, more exciting and less harmful than their bullfighting. Sweet flute intonations set the right tone and are quickly joined by the percussive scratches drawn by the piano strings. Moments later, McLure and Hart underpin a Latin-tinged groove that invites the horns for an urgent, magical feast à-la Coltrane. The tune ends with McLure’s bass ruminations.

Both “Reverend King” and “Equinox” bring hope into the world as true conveyers of a beneficial spiritual aura. The former, a push-pull rubato, is built with bowed bass, flute, and cymbal’s splashes; the latter, flowing at a slightly faster pace than the original, is a minor blues coated with Liebman’s rapturous soprano flights, Markowitz’s poised linkage of chords and melodies, and Lovano’s heartwarming tenor strains.

The rhythmic sophistication of Billy Hart stands out on “Compassion”, an almost 18-minute devotion that also expands with the saxophonists’ igneous phrases, which converge into unisons and then scatter up to uproars that go in and out of focus.

Liebman/Lovano quintet strikes with ravishment and gusto, showing their reverence for Coltrane’s legacy while exhibiting their own special gifts.
In addition to knowing inside out the territory they’re stepping into, refinement and dynamism became keys in the process.

Favorite Tracks:
01 – Locomotion ► 03 – Ole ► 06 – Compassion