Customer Reviews

Dream Dancing

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Amazon.com knew I had ordered several Bill Charlap CD's a few weeks ago.
Then a week ago, Amazon were looking after me by recommending Warren Vache's Dream Dancing with Bill Charlap; this is my music. Good music, clear recordings and great numbers.So a good team. Amazon.com for looking out. Warren Vache for compassionate music and the unsurpassable Bill Charlap who was playing at Birdland last week just when I happened to be in NY. WOW!

Martin Steele

A perfect jazz album. Beautiful songs, a terrific rhythm section (especially Eddie Locke, longtime drummer for both Coleman Hawkins and Roy Eldridge), and Warren Vache's sweet, sweet horn. This is "real" jazz, the way it used to be.

Truly unique, inventive, technically brilliant yet as seasoned and comfortable as an old shoe, Warren Vache is a special star in the music universe. Just listen to how he makes the trumpet mute jump, sing and dance in this CD's masterpiece opener, "Close Your Eyes." There's no other musician who could bring such delight and surprise out of that old standard.

Just listen to a few cuts. This mellow album belongs in your
jazz collection for listening on both rainy and sunny days.

As the first plunger-muted tones of "Close Your Eyes" meet the soft shoe of Eddie Locke's brushwork, you know that Warren Vache is on an impassioned mission to claim his rightful position at the helm of Jazz trumpet. Unfairly branded as strictly a "Swing" or "Trad" player, Mr. Vache has coalesced his influences into a unique, imitable style; his solos unravel in long skeins of cascading ideas, owing as much to the legacy of Fats Navarro and Clifford Brown as to the trumpet heroes of the Swing Era. Warren's melodically complete improvisations, coupled with his singing, burnished tone allow any song he chooses to play a metamorphosis into a unique jazz experience. Bill Charlap on piano provides the perfect foil for Mr. Vache's creations - his solos and accompaniment can be spare, complex, obtuse, yet always swinging as he seems to be able to summon the entire history of Jazz piano at his whim. Dennis Irwin on bass and the aforementioned Eddie Locke on drums not only provide a rock solid foundation, but are eager participants in the creative proceedings. Harry Allen's "Stan Getz meets Ben Webster" tenor sax adds a luxurious counterpoint to Mr. Vache's creations on 4 tracks, most notably "Lover, Come Back to Me" and "What's New."

The modal joys of "Close Your Eyes" resolve into the understated beauty of "Too Late Now". "Quasimodo" (Bird's line on "Embraceable You") is taken "medium up" and proves that great players don't have rely on hackneyed phrases to "be-bop". "Lover, Come Back to Me" is "up" and swung hard by all hands. A relaxed Warren expounds upon the joys of "Dream Dancing" along with a "Websterish" Harry Allen and some sublime Charlap. (Note the "Hi-Fly" motif that gets bandied about the 4's and the coda). "Blue Lou" features a Harmon-muted Warren burning up the changes, a nicely plucked bass solo by Dennis Irwin and some fine brushwork by Eddie Locke.

"Some Other Time" is one of those deceptive melodies ala Johnny Mandel's "A Time for Love" that pose an improvisational sand trap for players of lesser accomplishment than we are graced with here. Warren's evocative reading of this piece showcases the beauty of his sound and his mastery of the Jazz ethos. Bill Charlap contributes a subtlety masterful solo of his own. "You're a Lucky Guy" swings along brightly with Mr. Charlap keeping things "in Stride". With muted cornet, Mr. Vache burns mightily on "You're All the World to Me" which features some nice exchanges with Eddie Locke's brushwork.
"What's New" is taken at a slightly brighter tempo than has become the norm, allowing Harry Allen and Warren Vache to create this classic a new.

"I'm Shooting High" is a high octane outing for Warren's muted cornet, abetted by Harry Allen's tenacious tenor sax. Warren Vache's whimsical crooning on "Not Exactly Paris" will bring fleeting, bittersweet memories of lost loves to even the most heart-hardened listener. Although revered among the trumpet playing fraternity and jazz fans throughout the world, Mr. Vache has never received the accolades due someone with his enormous talent. This recording should prove to both the uninitiated and the jazz "cogneziotti" alike, that Warren Vache is a dominant voice in Jazz and truly a talent deserving wider recognition.

More great, swinging jazz from Arbors Records. "Dream Dancing" has won the Fats Waller Prize from France's Academie du Jazz for the best record of 2004 in the traditional/classic style.

Warren Vache's "Dream Dancing" CD is just plain excellent! Repeat listenings never gets tiring or worn out. Most likely, you'll be repeating many tunes before going on to the next track. The music swings, soothes, satisfies, and sings. Vache's tone is supurb, his sidemen provide excellent backup and collaboration, and the selection of tunes are worthy of the talent playing them. When you hear the first tune, "Close Your Eyes," you want to hear all the rest. The special guest, Bill Charlap, adds solid piano work, but Harry Allen's tenor sax gives the CD a greater breadth for a commanding ensemble performance. Dennis Irwin comforts each tune with his steady bass lines, and Eddie Locke is consistently reliable on drums. Then, there's Vache's beguiling tone and memorable passages while, when needed, using just the right mute. The liner notes mentions a few tunes as "burried treasures," but now they are revealed and burried no more. This is a winning recording; so, if you're in a mind for some excellent mainstream jazz, this CD will please over and over again.

This is a beautiful album. Selections are excellent, except for "Not Exactly Paris" on which Vache sings (a mistake!). But he soars on the other numbers, especially "Close Your Eyes," the beautiful "Too Late Now" from the film "Royal Wedding," and "I'm Shooting High." The selections are good ones, and Vache's playing is smooth and listenable with just the right touch to make it distinctive, rather than mere "elevator music." Overall, a great album.