Allen ToussaintThe Bright MississippiNONESUCH 480380AAAA 1 /2In his liner notes to TheBright Mississipi, producerJoe Henry recallsthe “history lesson inAmerican musical alchemy”he got from NewOrleans r&b legendAllen Toussaint during the making of the 2005benefit album Our New Orleans. Playing hisarrangement of Professor Longhair’s “Tipitina,”the pianist mixed everything from pre-war jazzto European classical music to parlor folk, stirringit all with the blues. “It sounded like nothingI’d ever heard and like everything I’d everheard,” writes Henry.From that epiphany sprang The BrightMississippi, a mostly instrumental survey of jazzclassics on which, working in varied settingswith a great cast anchored by Henry’s stellarrhythm section of bassist David Piltch anddrummer Jay Bellerose, Toussaint invigoratesand enriches songs you thought you had heardthe final word on. In so doing, he demonstrateshow all musical roads, and rivers, and streams inAmerica lead to New Orleans.On a stunning duo treatment of the trad jazzwarhorse “Dear Old Southland,” Toussaintdances around trumpeter Nicolas Payton—whohas never played with greater pungency—withbracing tango and swing effects. Spanking noteson acoustic guitar, the remarkable Marc RibotLuciana SouzaTideVERVE 01646AAAASilky-voiced Souzakeeps those licketysplitsamba duos(some in breathtakingunison) with guitaristRomero Lubambo asthe poison arrow inher quiver while she lobs wistful pot-shots atgentle folk-pop. She’s co-writing tunes withhusband/producer/bassist Larry Klein that recallpristine yearnings of Erin Bode and JoniMitchell, but she won’t forget the carnival clubbingin Rio. If the subject matter is similarly jetset—cariocasand angelenos share an arch hipnessthrough endless partying and bottomlessbottles—the delivery on the West Coasters isneurotic and non-plussed, more catatonic thanlaid-back.Contrasting openers, salty “Adeus America”and smoky “Fire And Wood,” lay a sandy bedfor an album that teeters between surefootedsass and world-weary worry. The guitars adaptchannels his inner DjangoReinhardt for a striking bandrendition of “West End Blues,”then taps his inner WesMontgomery for a duet withTousssaint on Django’s “BlueDrag.” Spiked with second linerhythms, Thelonious Monk’s“Bright Mississippi” springsPayton and clarinetist DonByron like a finely calibratedwind-up toy.Duetting with the leader on Jelly RollMorton’s “Winin’ Boy Blues,” pianist BradMehldau plays against type by digging in withboth fists and engaging in out-of-time trickery.In an elegiac zone, Branford Marsalis warms theEllington-Strayhorn “Day Dream” with his lyricaltenor.An inescapable current of post-Katrina sadnessflows through The Bright Mississippi, theemotional center of which is Toussaint’s onevocal, on Leonard Feather’s “Long, LongJourney.” But with those rolling left-hand notesand buoyant stair-stepping rights, and the generosityand grandeur of his melting pot vision,Toussaint invokes nothing but joy.—Lloyd SachsThe Bright Mississippi: Egyptian Fantasy; Dear Old Southland;St. James Infirmary; Singin’ The Blues; Winin’ Boy Blues; WestEnd Blues; Blue Drag; Just A Closer Walk With Thee; BrightMississippi; Day Dream; Long, Long Journey; Solitude. (61:33)Personnel: Allen Toussaint, piano, vocals (11); Don Byron, clarinet;Nicholas Payton; Marc Ribot; acoustic guitar; David Piltch,bass; Jay Bellerose, drums/percussion; Brad Mehldau, piano (5);Joshua Redman, tenor saxophone (10).Ordering info: nonesuch.com»to the roles, Lubambo as sure-fire,detail-oriented literalist and LarryKoonse as sad, hollowed smoothie.Souza’s contralto, warm andinquisitive, caresses her poignantdaydreams, buoyed with Goldings’cool, sustained keyboard auras,with mere feathery wisps ofColiauta’s brushes or Baptista’shand-drums. e.e. cummings settingscontinue Souza’s wide-eyedgrappling with love and faiththrough restlessness and rootlessness; a line like“one querying wave will always whitely yearn”evokes empty beaches, breakfast vodka andanonymous anomie. As ever, Souza’s subtlestgesture and vocal nuance make the experiencepalatable, the ride unforgettable.—Fred BouchardTide: Adeus America & Eu Quero Um Samba; Fire And Wood;Our Gilded Home; Love – Poem 65; Circus Life; Once Again;Tide; Sorriu Para Mim; Chuva; Amulet. (42:41)Personnel: Souza, vocals; Romero Lubambo (1, 3, 5, 8, 9), LarryKoonse (2, 4, 6, 7, 10), guitar; Larry Goldings, piano, organ,estey, Fender Rhodes, accordion; Larry Klein, bass; VinnyColaiuta, drums; Cyro Baptista, percussion (2, 3, 5, 8, 9);Rebecca Pidgeon, background vocals (2, 5).Gary Husband’s DriveHotwiredABSTRACT LOGIX 015AAA 1 /2Drummer/keyboardist Gary Husband was onceconsidered a Tony Williams clone on steroids,his muscular fusion rhythms sandblastingrecords by Allan Holdsworth, JohnMcLaughlin and U.K. funksters Level 42,among others. But in recent years, Husband hasexpanded his skill set and musical direction.Whether playing synths with McLaughlin andBilly Cobham or releasing solo piano recordings,Husband has shown himself to be a mancapable of reinvention.Hotwired debuts Husband’s visceral straightaheadquartet Drive with stellar results. Britain’sfinest typically do their homework. Here,Husband’s drumming is a study in the greats,with references to Elvin Jones and Williams creatingcombustible tinder under an equally flammablefront line. “10/4” dances a winding oddmeteredgroove, as Julian Siegel’s tenor interweaveswith Richard Turner’s blatting trumpetgrowls. Husband dons mallets for the atmospheric“The Agony Of Ambiguity,” then flowsElvin-like full-set triplets for the hard-bop“Deux Deux’s Blues,” which layers a meatypulse under Wayne Shorter-esque melodicphrases.“Take The Coltrane Around” is all speedybebop, the album’s high-velocity showcasewhere Husband’s drumming recalls RalphPeterson Jr. for firepower and unruly aggression.Opener “The Defender” offers another drag-theriver-for-bodiesblowout, as the trumpet/tenorfront line intimates curt New Orleans-inspiredmelodies while Husband kicks nasty Latinpunches. Bonus track “Take 5” opens withHusband’s light-as-air drum solo before thequartet reinterprets it beyond anything DaveBrubeck would recognize. —Ken MicallefHotwired: The Defender; Heaven In My Hands; 10/4; TheAgony Of Ambiguity; Deux Deux’s Blues; Take The ColtraneAround; One Prayer; Angels Over City Square; Take 5. (70:14)Personnel: Gary Husband, drums, piano, synthesizer; RichardTurner, trumpet, electronics; Julian Siegel, tenor and sopranosaxophone; Michael Janisch, bass.» Ordering info: ververecords.com» Ordering info: abstractlogix.com56 DOWNBEAT August 2009
Dave Douglas & Brass EcstasySpirit MovesGREENLEAF 1010AAAAAs director of the Festival of New TrumpetMusic over the past several years, Dave Douglashas evidenced a dedication to showcasing thevaried potentialities of his instrument. His latestensemble, Brass Ecstasy, expands that sameimpulse to the whole brass section, offeringSpirit Moves as something of a CV for the modernbrass band.Of course, not every similarly composed unitcan display the multitude of sounds and identitiesoffered by Douglas’ all-star quintet. Fromlurching second-line revels to intricate chamberjazzcomplexity, military band precision tosmoke-filled nightclub swing, Brass Ecstasythumbs its collective nose at those who mightsuggest that a bunch of horns and a drum kit is asomehow “limited” configuration.The disc opens by transforming singer-songwriterRufus Wainwright’s torch-song lament“This Love Affair” into a gin-soaked stumblehome, dripping with bitter remorse even withoutthe benefit of Wainwright’s wry lyrics. It closeswith a mournful take on Hank Williams’ “I’mSo Lonesome I Could Cry,” howled as if by fourcats on a fence under the moonlight. The third ofthe album’s pop tunes is a wish-fulfillment emulationof the famed Stax Records horn section onOtis Redding’s “Mr. Pitiful.”The rest of the album is made up of Douglasoriginals, deploying tightly interwoven hornlines to conjure both jaunty grooves (“Orujo”)and impressionistic storytelling (“The BrassRing”). Making his advocacy more explicit arethree tunes, situated at the record’s center, payingexplicit homage to heirs and peers. “Bowie”is a lively example of the parade atmosphereand tongue-in-cheek humor favored by LesterBowie; “Rava” evokes the ECM airiness ofItalian trumpeter Enrico Rava; while on “Fats,”the band dons the convincing disguise of ahard-bop unit in honor of Fats Navarro.—Shaun BradySpirit Moves: This Love Affair; Orujo; The View From BlueMountain; Twilight Of The Dogs; Bowie; Rava; Fats; The BrassRing; Mister Pitiful; Great Awakening; I’m So Lonesome ICould Cry. (53:13)Personnel: Dave Douglas, trumpet; Luis Bonilla, trombone; VincentChancey, French horn; Marcus Rojas, tuba; Nasheet Waits, drums.»Ordering info: greenleafmusic.comAugust 2009 DOWNBEAT 57
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