Customer Reviews

Brian Blade Fellowship

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Brian Blade has put together a recording that communicates at a spiritual level.
For me, the highlight of the recording is Dave Easley's pedal steel guitar solo on 'Mohave'. It's astonishing, and one of the best solos I've ever heard. His passionate guitar is literally crying for joy.
John Cowherd's piano is thoughtful, melodic, and swinging when necessary.
Although there are many textures in this music, it all fits together beautifully. And the musicians all seem to be on the same page. It's one of those sessions that you can listen to a hundred times, and find something new every time. In other words, this is music that won't get stale!
Brian Blade's playing is sensitive, complex, and fiery, as are the compositions. Blade is one of the very best drummers to come along in quite a while.
This is music that hit me on a very deep level. It took 3 or 4 listenings before I could even understand it, but it was worth it. It's music that spoke to some very deep feelings within me, and every time I listen to it, I feel inspired.
This CD is beautiful, complex, and very interesting.

Now that the "young lion" movement is fizzling out, the real composers / players are emerging from the rubble. For anyone who's tired of the endless tribute albums and uninspired albums of standards, this album is a breath of fresh air for the jazz world. Mr. Blade has already proven himself as a drummer (he swings so hard, it hurts), but this album showcases his exceptional composing skills as well. The interaction between the players is beautiful. It's clearly evident that these guys were inspired by this session. Anyone who appreciates geniunely good music with integrity and heart & soul should add this to his / her collection immediately!!

I bought Brian Blade's album on the strength of his work with Joshua Redman and Kenny Garrett, but was surprised to find that, not only was he a great player, but his writing is extrememly strong, he has a wonderful ensemble (tenor/soprano sax, alto sax, upright bass, Grand Piano/Wurlitzer, electric guitar and pedal (yes, pedal!) steel guitar.

The album is nothin short of wonderful. The playing is sublime and, considering the size of the ensemble, nobody gets in anyone's way.

I just saw the group at the Montreal Jazz Fest and it was identical to the album, with the exception of the guitarist, who was replaced by Kurt Rosenwinkle (who I actually preferred). They took the material to even further heights. This is a band that came together quickly, but has an obvious chemistry. I saw them twice at the fest - once in a sort of Quebec version of MTV unplugged in front of a studio audience of about 75 people, and then in a theatre, packed to the rafters. The group played for two solid hours and, having spent 5 days at the festival, was a highlight (the only other show that was close was John Scofield's A Go Go performance).

Brian Blade is being considered the drummer of the new millenium. He reminds me, in some ways, of the late Tony Williams, not so much in the what he plays, but in his complete abandon and open-minded approach. Buy the album, see the band, and watch out for this guy - he's going to be one of the great leaders of the next 50 years (he's only 27!), considering his musical maturity at so young an age.

There is not a weak track on the album. One last thing that amazed me, both live and on record - with an ensemble that large, there was never a clash - everyone had their place and the sound, while lush and warm, was never cluttered.

Finally, Brian and his mates are very spiritual people, and it comes out in their music. Brian, when speaking, is exceedingly humble, and perhaps a bit overwhelmed by the reception he has received, but there is no lack of confidence when he ge! ts behind a kit!

Oh yes - the album is produced by Daniel Lanois, yet for once it does not have that recognizable signature Lanois sound (not that I mind it, but it is nice to see him abandoning it when appropriate). A must have album , and surely one of the best of 1998!

having been an admirer of brian's playing for some time now i was really interested to hear his record. the music on this recording is really a breath of fresh air, especially coming from somebody who may have been looked upon as a "young jazz lion". brian proves that real music comes from within' and staying true to one's roots. i heard he was offered a record deal five or six years ago, but waited until he thought he had written music that resonated with him. it would've been easy for him to put together a session of burning players and i'm sure it would've yeilded a good record. but, "fellowship" is a GREAT record and it's rare that a young musician is mindful enough to know what will make an okay record and what makes a true representation of their vision. i may be going overboard, but i don't think so. jazz has been turned into a commidity, a genre, an idiom, a bag so to speak. i sure hope blade keeps doing what he's doing and more people drop their labels and just embrace MUSIC. that's what "fellowship" is all about and you can hear it on the recording. thank you brian.

I came across this CD because it had the magic words "produced by Daniel Lanois" on it. Plus, I knew Brian's work with Emmylou Harris. It was only when I put the CD into my player that I noticed the label - Blue Note. I was VERY surprised when I heard the first few bars of this wonderful music - given the number of heads in the ensemble the sound is dense but nobody gets in the way of the other players. The compositions are strong - I found myself humming and whistling along to the tunes during the first listening. The guitar playing reminds me of Pat Metheney, which is meant to be a compliment. Brian's CD is in the top 5 recordings of 1998!

Simply put, this is one the best jazz albums of the last few years from one of the best bands of the last few years. Drawing together many different influences, the music here has many rich melodies and textures that proves a current band can create something as beautiful as any of the classic Blue Note albums of the past. I could rave on about this recording, but suffice it to say, I encourage anyone and everyone to pick this one up. I certainly hope there will be more to come from this group.

I got turned on to Brian Blade after hearing his formidable performance on the brilliant Joshua Redman CD Elastic - still my favourite by Redman and one of my favourite jazz CDs ever. I've since come across him again on Lizz Wright's Salt but this album is my first proper stop on my search for more of his work.

There's a lot to enjoy here. In addition to Blades beautiful drum patterns, there's acoustic bass (by Christopher Thomas), piano and Wurlitzer (Jon Cowherd), tenor and soprano saxophone (Melvin Butler), alto saxophone (Myron Walden), guitar (Jeff Parker) and even pedal steel guitar (played by Dave Easley) and mandolo guitar and white mustang (played by Daniel Lanois). Now you don't get to hear those last two everyday. Not in jazz circles anyway.

And there's none of that I-can-do-it-better-than-you-can nonsense on here either. I've heard it on many jazz albums; people trying to outdo others on their solos: "Look how clever I am!", "Look how fast I can blow on my sax!", "Look how many licks per minute I can do on my guitar!" and the like. Instead, what I hear here is a group of obviously talented individuals getting together to paint a musical landscape, each contributing his individual colours, improvising with heart, love and respect for all the other participants. The end product is truly breathtaking.

I have no favourites on here; it's all good. I find the ballads "In Spite Of Everything" and the Jon Cowherd penned "Lifeline" (the only song on the CD not written by Blade) particularly tasty though. I also love the closer, "Loving Without Asking". The title had me thinking for a while. Without asking for what, I pondered? For permission? For a reason why? For anything in return? I'm personally familiar with the first two but not the last. Music that makes me think. Whatever next?

I found this a total aural feast. I invite any jazz lovers out there to get a copy, put it on and just gorge. (Guess what? It's calorie free!)

This is the first CD review I have written on Amazon, and perhaps anywhere. Reason I am doing it now, is because I discovered Brian Blade about 2 years ago when I heard his Perceptual CD. I thought it was pretty amazing and it felt not just like i was listening to a great CD, but rather one that fully enveloped me. I am short on adjectives at the moment, but after listening to it I dubbed it folk jazz as it seemed to me to be music that a folk singer or group would perform if it took on a jazz idiom. It was and continues to be some of the most soulful and spiritual jazz that I have heard thus far. I soon after discovered his other two albums and then the lovely Mama Rosa CD as well with Brian's vocals. For some reason I completely missed this CD and just discovered its existence in the last few days. Well, after about 3 listens i was so moved by it, that I had to write my first review here. Another spiritual, soulful and fantastic group of tunes by an equally fantastic collaboration of talented and non egotistic individuals. If you have never heard this stuff before, I would definitely give this a shot. You will not be sorry.

It seemed as though you did not find all that many jazz recordings being led by drummers at the time this was released (Leon Parker and Joey Baron are quick examples that come to mind), but young Louisiana-born drummer Brian Blade put together a group and laid down some excellent tracks on this Daniel Lanois-produced CD. Besides Blade on drums, the Brian Blade Fellowship comprises Jon Cowherd on piano and organ, Christopher Thomas on acoustic bass, Melvin Butler on alto and tenor sax, Myron Walden on alto sax, Jeff Parker on guitar, and Dave Easley on pedal steel guitar(!), with Lanois adding some guitar licks on a couple of cuts.

By the way, this recording was made not in Lanois's New Orleans studio, but rather at the Teatro in Oxnard, California, where Lanois had also recently recorded Willie Nelson. Fortunately, the recording does not feature the murky bass and spacey effects that Lanois sometimes seems to favor; rather, the sound is clean and clear. Especially noteworthy is that although Brian Blade headlines the group and wrote seven of the eight tunes, his drumming never dominates either sonically or musically. The sound of the drums is given some prominence, but never overbearingly so, and Blade's musicianship is so tasteful that he never seems to be trying to draw attention to his playing. The music is tuneful and expressive, with an interesting use of instruments such as the steel guitar to add color and an extra layer of emotion. This is a really nice recording that deserves wide hearing.

Unfortunately I do not share fellow reviewers high praise of this album. In fact I was sadly disappointed. I'll start with Daniel Lanois. I have great respect for Lanois and I recognize that he has done great things and produced some very fine lps over the years however I feel he has drastically overproduced this album to the point that it sounds like a movie soundtrack; mostly faceless uninspired music. The songs all sound rather similiar and there is no distinctive soloing that showcases any of the band members talents and this perhaps is the worse part because I know that Brian Blade is an extremely talanted young musician. Unfortunately that is all lost in Lanois' production. Nothing unique or standout here and definitely not one of the best of 98, perhaps the next album will do Blade better justice.