By Don Heckman. Sunday, May 13, 2001.
Los Angeles Times
It's time to take another look to the south--toward a steaming caldron
of music that seems to produce an unlimited variety of jazz flavors. Cuba is at
the epicenter, but ingredients come from around the Caribbean and beyond.
Here are a few hot offerings:
*** Jess "Chucho" Valdes, "Solo--Live in New York," Blue
Note. This Grammy Award-winning Cuban pianist is very much his own man, whether
working with the pioneering jazz band Irakere, leading his own quartet or--as in
this set from a Lincoln Center show--as a soloist. Understandably, most of his
essential qualities are present in each setting, if in more direct fashion in
this go-it-alone mode. The first references that come to mind are the solo
efforts of the legendary Art Tatum. Like Tatum, Valdes invests his performances
with the full array of pianistic resources, from delicate interior harmonies to
thunderous chording and sweeping, rhapsodic arpeggios. The difference is that
Valdes' interpretations--almost exclusive of the original material--tend to take
the same arc, alternating gentle phrasing with massive pounding. Often the
effect is electrifying. At other times, the lyrical qualities of his
program--which ranges from "Over the Rainbow" to such Spanish-language
classics as "Besame Mucho," "El Manicero" and Munequita
Linda"--are diminished in the process.
*** 1/2 Paquito D'Rivera, "Habanera," Enja Nova. Like Valdes,
D'Rivera is a veteran of the '80s Cuban jazz scene that produced a startling
array of gifted musicians. In this unusual outing, his clarinet and alto
saxophone are positioned in frameworks provided by the mini-orchestra Absolute
Ensemble and a rhythm section that features pianist Kenny Drew Jr. and
percussionist Mino Cinelu. The music is far-reaching, embracing Dizzy
Gillespie's "Birks Works," Juan Tizol's "Caravan," originals
by D'Rivera and Cinelu, as well as rearranged versions of three Gershwin
Preludes and variations on "I Got Rhythm" and "Cuban Overture."
The results are splendid, a superb blend of soloing--especially from D'Rivera
and Drew--with the lively timbres of the Absolute Ensemble. Look for this one in
the best Latin jazz category in next year's Grammy nominations.
*** 1/2 Charlie Haden featuring Gonzalo Rubalcaba, "Nocturne,"
Verve. Say this about Haden: He sure knows how to make records. And he couldn't
have picked a better partner to help explore a lovely program of romantic songs
from Cuba ("En La Orilla del Mundo," "No Te Empenes Mas," "Tres
Palabras" and "Contigo en La Distancia/En Nosotros") and Mexico ("Nocturnal,"
"Yo Sin Ti," "El Ciego" and "Noche de Ronda").
Guitarist Pat Metheny and saxophonists Joe Lovano and David Sanchez are on a few
tracks, but the core trio of Haden, Rubalcaba and drummer Ignacio Berroa brings
this stunning program to life. Add to that the passionate violin playing of
Federico Britos Ruiz on three tracks, and it would be hard to imagine a more
convincing blend of the subtle lyricism of jazz, the easy flow ofLatin (often
rumba) rhythms and an enticing collection of songs.
*** 1/2 Omar Sosa, "Prietos," Ota Records, distributed by
Harmonica Mundi. Cuban-born pianist Sosa, based in San Francisco since the
mid-'90s, offers an omnivorous collection of sounds in this new release that
afford an insightful portrayal of the explosive diversity taking place in the
genre generally (and insufficiently) described as Latin jazz. Sosa's large
ensembles steam through rap, hip-hop and funk grooves, shifting into Thelonious
Monk-style accents, adding call-and-response vocals, Dizzy Gillespie-like brass
sounds and the collectivity of Sun Ra's Solar Arkestra. No single element
remains in focus for long, and the level of creativity is astonishingly high. "Prietos"
demands, and rewards, repeated listening to reveal its many gripping facets.
*** Los Hombres Calientes: Irvin Mayfield & Bill Summers, "New
Congo Square," Basin Street Records. Like Sosa, Mayfield and Summers has a
determinedly contemporary perspective. In their case, however, they begin from a
New Orleans point of view--not an unreasonable choice, given the musical melting
pot the Crescent City has been for centuries. In a startling collection of
tunes--23 in all--they bring together every imaginable sort of Latin rhythm
without losing the essential connection with New Orleans jazz. A good part of
the credit for holding it all together has to go to Cuban drummer Horacio "El
Negro" Hernandez, with many of the tracks further enlivened by the presence
of singer Issac Delgado as well as members of Irakere and the ReBirth Brass
Band.
*** Various artists, "Calle 54," Blue Note. "Calle 54"
is a colorful documentary about Latin jazz by Spanish director Fernando Trueba
and opening in theaters Friday. Unlike Ken Burns' "Jazz," "Calle
54" avoids talking heads in favor of allowing the music to speak for
itself. The soundtrack reveals how efficient the music is in doing that. The
selections and the artists on the album's 12 tracks are richly diverse--Michel
Camilo, Gato Barbieri, Tito Puente, Chico O'Farrill, Eliane Elias and Jerry
Gonzalez & the Fort Apache Band. The most intriguing track, however, may be
the final one, a touching, dynamically rhythmic duet rendering of "La
Comparasa" by Chucho Valdes and his father, veteran pianist Bebo Valdes.
*** 1/2 Nestor Torres, "This Side of Paradise," Shanachie Records.
Puerto Rican-born Torres says he developed his improvisational skills "as a
charanga flutist." And, although much of this collection flows easily in
the stream of smooth jazz, it is his beautifully articulated flute lines--still
resonating with dance rhythms--that bring the music to life. Equally appealing,
he moves past the predictability of smooth jazz into tracks tinged with
merengue, bossa nova and funk grooves. And, on the salsa-invested dance tune "No
Te Enamores" the versatile Torres tops it all off with his debut recorded
vocal.
*** 1/2 Monty Alexander, "Goin' Yard," Telarc Jazz. Alexander
spent the early part of his career concentrating on his jazz piano chops, which
are first rate. Lately, however, he has been dipping more deeply into his
Jamaican roots. ("Stir It Up," a Bob Marley tribute, and "Monty
Meets Sly and Robbie," with the well-known Jamaican bass and drum duo, were
released in 1999 and 2000). In this program, recorded live at Pittsburgh's
Manchester Craftsmen's Guild, it becomes clear that Alexander is having a great
deal of fun. Incorporating Caribbean rhythms (not just reggae), propelled by a
seven piece ensemble sparked by the hand drums of Robert Thomas Jr., Alexander
uses the danceable beats as a cushion that allows his still firmly jazz-based
improvisations to soar freely. In Jamaican parlance, "yard" means "home"--or
Jamaica--and by rediscovering his connection with that root source, Alexander
has re-energized his music.
Don Heckman Writes Frequently About Jazz for The Times
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