Identity

Jeremy Pelt | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (July 19, 2005)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Max Jazz Records
• ASIN: B0009Q0EN8
• In-Print Editions: MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 3.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #329,545 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Editorial Reviews

The Wall Street Journal

It is the beat of Jeremy Pelt’s heart that underscores the future of jazz.

Product Description

Over the last year and a half Pelt has been writing compositions that would help define his musical direction. These compositions were written specifically for various acoustic and electric configurations. Identity features a core band of Frank LoCrasto (piano, Fender Rhodes, Hammond B-3 & Clavinet), Vicente Archer (bass), and Eric McPherson (drums). Guest artist appearances are by Mike Moreno (guitar), Warren Wolf (vibes) and Myron Walden (soprano saxophone & bass clarinet).

The recording presents over 70 minutes of fresh repertoire. Pelt’s upbeat "Re-invention" opens the session with the quartet. The group slows things down with "Eddie’s Story" dedicated to Dr. Eddie Henderson. This piece allows Pelt to exhibit his fluid phrasings on the flugelhorn. The pace quickens with the first electric offering titled "Seek". The vibrant composition "Suspicion" follows, giving Pelt a chance to improvise while the rhythm section vamps before guitarist Mike Moreno slows it down with a tasty, straight-ahead solo. Pelt then pays tribute to the recently deceased pianist, James Williams, with "Eye of the Beholder", a ballad that features subtle effects between the trumpet and Fender Rhodes. The quartet becomes a quintet with the addition of vibist Warren Wolf on the straight-ahead composition "Celestial," that features a nice solo from bassist Vicente Archer. Wolf and the quartet pick up the pace on "Angular," which is a roller-coaster of a ride highlighted by trading between Pelt and Wolf. The pace slows dramatically for the beautiful ballad "Haiku" that showcases Pelt’s breathtaking use of space as well as his delicate sound on the muted trumpet. "Scorpio" and "Dusk" close the session with the help of Myron Walden and Moreno. The two compositions are filled with effects, and the music moves into an electric freefall as the inventive and eclectic session comes to a close.

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Tasty, more like 3.5 stars, February 25, 2006

By 

Anthony Cooper (Louisville, KY United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Identity (Audio CD)

Jeremy Pelt is an excellent trumpet player, and Identity is an album of orginal songs with an electronic flavor. Mr. Pelt uses some suble electronic effects on his trumpet in some songs, and there is a lot of electric piano. It's hardly as electronic as Nicholas Payton's "Sonic Trance", more in line with Dave Douglas' "Keystone". This is a good album, I give it 3.5 stars. If a few of the weaker songs were taken off, it would be a 4 star album on the strength of songs like "Re-Invention", "Suspicion", "Scorpio", and "Angular". The overall mood of the album is laid-back, similar to "Close To My Heart". Mr. Pelt can play fast, loud, and high with the best of them, but he seems to prefer playing tastier. If you're more curious about Jeremy Pelt, or this album, he has a ton of live downloads on his website.

5 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars A Near Miss, September 15, 2005

By 

M. Murphy (birmingham, alabama United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Identity (Audio CD)

Jeremy Pelt's follow up to the syrupy "Close to My Heart" works about half the time. While Pelt clearly has "chops" his composition skills are simply not up to the task of 73 minutes of music. Perhaps a standard or two or the addition of some other tunes could have allowed Pelt to do what he really does quite well,BLOW. Not that the cd doesn't have it's moments.It does. Pelt seems to shine in the more "cooperative" pieces like Eddie's Story and Eye of the Beholder.

Perhaps Mulgrew Miller[a Maxjazz regular] would have helped. As is the supporting cast supports but can't seem to elevate Pelt on several "fillers". While we're on the subject of "fillers" when did it become mandatory to produce 73 minutes of music.Clearly Identity suffers from having 3 or 4 too many mediocre tunes which should have been ommitted or replaced by better compositions.Other recent releases[Joshua Redman,Dave Douglas,etc] are guilty of excess tunes that seemed tossed in. Jeremy Pelt is close. If he can avoid the schmaltz of "all strings"[Close to My Heart] and modify the ambition of all original compositions[Identity],than he would have found a balance to showcase his large talent.

Perhaps the next time. I'm rooting for him. Not reccommended.