Customer Reviews

Ballads

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Pity bassist Marc Johnson. He was an integral part of the Bill Evans' Trio during the pianist's extraordinary valedictory that culminated in the sets, "Last Waltz" and "Consecration," only to be orphaned following the pianist's sudden death at the completion of those remarkable recordings. There would be no one to take Bill's place, but approximately ten years later Johnson would record with a brilliant young pianist who was the next best thing--Dave Catney ("Jade Visions")--only to be re-orphaned when the youthful Catney succumbed to AIDS. And now the bassist has teamed up with Enrico Pieranunzi, who has less in common with Evans' late volcanic expressionism or Catney's effervescent impressionism than with the crystalline classicism of late John Lewis ("Evolution I and II").

This is music that's impossible to dislike--anyone who appreciates good music will not object to your having it playing in the background. But don't be fooled: this is music that repays serious listening, even though the frequent minor modalities, suspended rhythms, and mono-toned, languorous mood will make it difficult for many listeners to absorb the program at one continuous sitting. (Apart from the two standards, I would be surprised if even an attentive listener could identify the songs after a single hearing.)

Pieranunzi takes few chances and makes no mistakes. One of the tunes ("Thought") is simply a melody played through once. On the other tunes Johnson's bass is given either equal or greater solo time than the piano.

While Pieranunzi's exacting and deliberate approach (he uses conservative voicings of chords but is a master at voice-leading) encourages Johnson to cut way back on his technique (no hint of twang, exaggerated decay, double stops, or tocatta-styled finger wizardry), the bassist is nonetheless more active yet no less definitive in his solos than is the pianist. Together they complement one another--a true piano-bass meeting of minds, with the drums marking cadences and providing carefully placed intensifiers and colorings.

I suspect Johnson has to be most happy not only about the substance of his solos but the sound of his bass, which is captured with striking, perhaps unequaled, verisimilitude.

The three musicians on this recording are all consummate musicians and they play together beautifully as a unit. Pieranunzi and Johnson display a deep lyricism in their soloing and Baron's brushwork on the drums provides unobtrusive and supportive backup. They are close to a dream trio.

I say "close" because they are not as exciting or propulsive perhaps as the classic Bill Evans-Scott LaFaro-Paul Motian trio of the 1961 Village Vanguard session, or, for that matter, Pieranunzi's own trio with bassist Hein van de Geyn and drummer Andre Ceccarelli recorded live in Paris in a double album released the same year as this one, Live in Paris (2006). Pieranunzi, van de Geyn and Ceccarelli kick ass on that one. Pieranunzi, Johnson and Baron are softer, more reflective throughout on this album.

Pieranunzi is an extremely interesting, musically alert pianist. His musical debts -at least some of them--are clear. He's Bill Evans on a base of Bud Powell with modern harmonics and a strong rhythmic pulse thrown in. Typically, on this album, when he reenters the song after Marc Johnson has soloed, Pieranunzi will up the pulse, more intense and quick notes for a few bars in before he relaxes to a slow lyrical tempo once more. It's effective. As much as I've had the opportunity to listen to him (this is the fourth CD of his I've bought), I always pay attention because he never plays fluff, he always says something in his solos. I'd read that Marc Johnson was very good and he is. He plays with strength and intelligence, with a sound that lies somewhere between the high stringed sound of a La Faro or an Eddie Gomez, and the lower solid tones of a Ron Carter. He never approaches the deep rich woodiness of Charlie Haden, my absolute favorite bass player, but he plays interesting things in his solos and I listen with pleasure to every note. Baron's role is limited on this album to discrete accompaniment, mostly or wholly on brushes. He's good and what he plays is appropriate to the music played but I can't say more than that. On this album, at least, he does not excite me as does, say, Paul Motian. On the other hand, he never goes overboard in his accompaniment, which is something I can't say about Motian, much as I love his playing.

Each one of these songs is played well, and some are played exceptionally well. Why, then, am I disappointed by the album? The answer is sameness. There's not enough variety. Song by song, the album is great, But eleven songs, all balladic in melodies, all played at much the same volume level, the pianist using the same pedal combinations, the drummer swooshing along behind him softly on brushes, and all except one of the pieces at roughly the same tempo -I was bored. The one exception is the third song, an original by Pieranunzi entitled "When I Think of You." On that one, Baron kicks the tempo up slightly -think of the more lilting tempi on some of Evans' Village Vanguard pieces, like "Waltz for Debbie" or "Alice in Wonderland." Johnson takes a typically tasty solo after the ensemble's intro. Pieranunzi comes back in on a propulsive rhythmic riff and then settles back into a lyrical groove. It all lilts, it's lighter feeling as a result, and it breaks up the almost sleepy slow tempi of all the other pieces on the album. Let me repeat myself. Individually, these songs are pleasing to listen to. It's just collectively that I chafe, wanting something to change. But it doesn't.

Ballads is one of the most charming albuns I do have.
Enrico and his friends do know how to play jazz in a sophisticated way.
Absolutly gorgeous !

This is an astonishingly beautiful CD. I listen to a lot of jazz piano trios and 4tets, and this is one of my favorite disks. I bought one for my car, and another for home, and several for friends. It's a pity it isn't better known. Give it a try: take a risk. You'll be glad you did.