http://motion.state51.co.uk/reviews/410.html
Ellery Eskelin/Andrea Parkins/Jim
Black
Kulak 29 & 30
hatOLOGY
The presence of Eskelin alone is enough to make this CD a special experience for most
listeners. Please disregard his sorry and disgraceful lack of recorded exposure in
his native U.S, (where jazz geniuses are still driving taxis to make a living). On
tenor sax, Eskelin is The Man -- quite possibly one of the two or three best tenors on
the scene. He has a tone most sax players would die for, a great range, nimble fingers,
and a rich storehouse of musical ideas. He knows all the "outside" tricks -- harmonics, overblowing, key clicks and the rest -- but never seems compelled to flaunt his
avante gardism. He's also a interesting writer, who draws upon a large musical vocabulary
of funk, R&B, modal and harmolodic styles, and plays around with different tempos,
textures and moods -- often in the same piece. This allows
him to escape the restrictions of the modal, Coltranish rut which has handcuffed so
many good tenor players in the past thirty years. The other members of Eskelin's
current trio not only provide welcome support, but contribute toward a highly personal
trio sound. Andrea Parkins, on accordion and sampler, has an ideal role. Her most recent
album as leader was sometimes a little unfocused and self-indulgent, but on this
CD, she provides versatile and dynamic support for the leader, sounding on one track
like a backing horn section, laying down dissonant, spacy drones on another, and on a third,
approximating a funky Hammond B-3 organ. Black is the least obtrusive of the three
musicians, choosing not to call attention to himself with long drum solos or pyrotechnics, but he's busy and subtly effective nonetheless. Because Eskelin is a superbly
rhythmic player (among other things), Black can function as colorist, and he often
complements the two other group members with interactive cymbal splashes, kickdrum
punctuation and some very tasty brushwork. Don't miss this CD, and offer a big thank you
to Hat Hut and its patrons for continuing to give a forum to world-class musicians
who are ignored by greedy, sales-oriented music conglomerates in their own country.
Bill Tilland
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