TOP 12 OF 2020

DISTILLING a year’s music into just a few highlights isn’t easy! But during 2020, when (perhaps for all of us) emotions have been unpredictable, the wonderful creativity of much-valued jazz artists, alongside classical and folk interests, has been instrumental in ‘holding it together’. So, below are a dozen reviewed albums that I have frequently returned to for solace, for joy, for introspection, for escapism, and to accompany an eventual reacquaintance with ‘the great outdoors’. Presented in no particular order, I encourage you to follow the links to sample, purchase and enjoy these treasures.

Season’s greetings. Stay safe.

🎹 AP

Going Down The Well – MoonMot
Dee Byrne, Simon Petermann, Cath Roberts, Oli Kuster, Seth Bennett, Johnny Hunter
Release date: 14 February 2020 (Unit Records)
Review and purchasing link:
https://ap-reviews.com/2020/02/13/going-down-the-well-moonmot/

Tributes – Marius Neset
Marius Neset, Danish Radio Big Band conducted by Miho Hazama
Release date: 25 September 2020 (ACT Music)
Review and purchasing link:
https://ap-reviews.com/2020/09/22/review-tributes-marius-neset/

By And By – Graham South Quartet
Graham South, Richard Jones, Seth Bennett, Johnny Hunter
Release date: 18 September 2020 (Efpi Records)
Review and purchasing link:
https://ap-reviews.com/2020/09/18/review-by-and-by-graham-south-quartet/

Tenacity – Django Bates
Django Bates, Petter Eldh, Peter Bruun, Norbotten Big Band
Release date: 2 October 2020 (Lost Marble)
Review and purchasing link:
https://ap-reviews.com/2020/09/30/review-tenacity-django-bates/

Rickety Racket – Martin Pyne
Philippe Guyard, Russell Jarrett, Marianne Windham, Martin Pyne
Release date: 3 April 2020 (Tall Guy Records)
Review and purchasing link:
https://ap-reviews.com/2020/05/08/rickety-rackety-martin-pyne-quartet/
(see also Spirits of Absent Dancers)

Mór – Agnar Már Magnússon
Agnar Már Magnússon, Valdimar Kolbeinn Sigurjónsson, Matthías Hemstock, Stefán Jón Bernharðsson, Asbjörn Ibsen Bruun, Frank Hammarin, Nimrod Ron
Release date: 1 September 2020 (Dimma)
Review and purchasing link:
https://ap-reviews.com/2020/10/05/review-mor-agnar-mar-magnusson/

While Looking Up – Jimmy Greene
Jimmy Greene, Reuben Rogers, Kendrick Scott, Aaron Goldberg, Lage Lund, Stefon Harris
Release date: 3 April 2020 (Mack Avenue)
Review and purchasing link:
https://ap-reviews.com/2020/03/30/while-looking-up-jimmy-greene/

Another Kind of Soul – Tony Kofi
Tony Kofi, Andy Davies, Alex Webb, Andrew Cleyndert, Alfonso Vitale
Release date: 24 April 2020 (The Last Music Company)
Review and purchasing link:
https://ap-reviews.com/2020/04/23/another-kind-of-soul-tony-kofi/

Flow – Maria Chiara Argirò + Jamie Leeming
Maria Chiara Argirò, Jamie Leeming
Release date: 16 October 2020 (Cavalo Records)
Review and purchasing link:
https://ap-reviews.com/2020/10/12/review-flow-maria-chiara-argiro-jamie-leeming/

Totem – Ferdinando Romano
Ralph Alessi, Tommaso Iacoviello, Simone Alessandrini, Nazareno Caputo, Manuel Magrini, Ferdinando Romano, Giovanni Paolo Liguori
Release date: 24 April 2020 (Losen Records)
Review and purchasing link:
https://ap-reviews.com/2020/05/04/totem-ferdinando-romano-feat-ralph-alessi/

High Heart – Ben Wendel
Ben Wendel, Shai Maestro, Gerald Clayton, Michael Mayo, Joe Sanders, Nate Wood
Release date: 30 October 2020 (Edition Records)
Review and purchasing link:
https://ap-reviews.com/2020/10/26/review-high-heart-ben-wendel/

Humble Travelers – Floating Circles Quartet
Aidan Pearson, Matt Hurley, Jonny Wickham, Arthur Newell, Johanna Burnheart
Release date: 12 September 2020
Review and purchasing link:
https://ap-reviews.com/2020/09/10/review-humble-travelers-floating-circles-quartet/

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REVIEW: ‘Rickety Racket’ – Martin Pyne Quartet

ANOTHER RECORDING which ‘winks’ at me to be heard over and over (‘more than happy to oblige) is Rickety Racket from the Martin Pyne Quartet (MPQ) – and it’s certainly proved to be neither rickety, nor a racket!

Prominent as a vibraphonist in performance and recordings, as well as to be found behind various percussion set-ups, Pyne frequently leans more towards free improvisation projects such as MPH; and as a songwriter, he is also pivotal to vocalist Laura Zakian’s EP, Minor Moments. But in the combined role of composer, bandleader and drummer, this new album of original material is his most straight-ahead instrumental jazz release to date.

It could partly be due to the pianoless nature of MPQ’s line-up – with saxophonist Philippe Guyard, electric guitarist Russell Jarrett and double bassist Marianne Windham – that there’s a distinct sense of light and space in these seven well-crafted numbers. In fact, it’s a glorious synergy of wafting, melodic tunes (with the blithe immediacy of 1960s recordings) and impish free-spiritedness that, especially in more animated episodes, even sans keyboard instrument, can summon the sound world of Thelonious Monk. The impudent title track does just that – a snappy, angular fairground ride of discordant guitar-and-sax riffs to reverberant bass and precise drumming. Percussive detailing is also a feature of delightfully buoyant Pony Express, Jarrett’s lithe guitar improv pushing the momentum forward – and that considered balance of rhythm and freeness is further demonstrated as Guyard’s soprano teasingly gyrates across its midway oasis.

Martin Pyne’s more contemplative or romantic pieces are sublime. The affectionate longing in Miss You Already (song for Cheryl), dedicated to a sadly departed musical colleague, is beautifully portrayed through the most elegant tenor melody. Here, Guyard’s mellow tone, with a slight edge, is so attractive, as is the all-round integration of MPQ’s instrumentation and arrangement. Wistful descending-bass bossa nova Desert Rose feels ready-made for TV, and again, the individual sparkle and dynamic of each musician elevates it. Pyne’s music can be inspired by literature, with A Stillness of Appomattox referencing historian Bruce Catton’s account of the final year of the American Civil War; and it’s Jarrett‘s lucid, countrified guitar strains that pave the way for the tranquil, almost weary footfall of this gorgeously homey tune.

Sixes and Sevens, originally conceived with vocals for Laura Zakian, swings irresistibly to ticking, crackling snare and throbbing bass, Jarrett’s melodic runs reminiscent of Jim Hall. And closing Beneath the Smile may yet become another song for Zakian, Guyard’s tenor pointing the lyrical way before the quartet promenades into the warm afterglow – a charming conclusion.

When music beckons us back, it’s a sure sign we’re onto something good. There’s much in jazz and classical repertoire which has that enduring effect – and the feel-good, mischief and effortless musicianship of Rickety Racket is, quite simply, blissful.

Released digitally on 3 April 2020 and available from Bandcamp.

 

Philippe Guyard tenor saxophone, soprano saxophone
Russell Jarrett guitar
Marianne Windham bass
Martin Pyne drums, composition

Tall Guy Records / Martin Pyne at Bandcamp

Tall Guy Records (2020) 

 

RECENT LISTENING: April 2020 (2)

Steal the Light – Let Spin
Moss Freed, Ruth Goller, Finlay Panter, Chris Williams
Release date: 17 April 2020 (Efpi Records)
letspin.bandcamp.com

Life is the Dancer – Rob Luft
Rob Luft, Joe Wright, Joe Webb, Tom McCredie, Corrie Dick with Byron Wallen, Luna Cohen
Release date: 17 April 2020 (Edition Records)
robluft.bandcamp.com

Rickety Racket – Martin Pyne Quartet
Philippe Guyard, Russell Jarrett, Marianne Windham, Martin Pyne
Release date: 3 April 2020 (Tall Guy Records)
martinpyne.bandcamp.com

Two Chevrons Apart – Yuri Goloubev
Tim Garland, John Turville, Yuri Goloubev, Asaf Sirkis
Release date: 17 April 2020 (Basho Records)
bashorecords.com

Neutral Tones – Beresford Harries
Charlie Beresford, Tim Harries
Release date: 15 April 2020 (The 52nd)
the52nd.bandcamp.com

Trio (3CD) – Felix Jay
Felix Jay, Rob Luft, Byron Wallen, Nicola Alesini, Susan Alcorn, BJ Cole, Jan Steele
Recorded 1999–2019 (Hermetic Recordings)
burningshed.com (TBC) and ebay.co.uk