Customer Reviews

Journey to the Centre of an Egg

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The oud is a small, pear-shaped stringed instrument that dates back about 5,000 years. It is widely considered to be a precursor of the English lute. It is fretless and typically has 11 strings, 10 of which are paired in courses of two.

In the jazz world, the oud has had precious few full-time practitioners. For most listeners, exposure to the instrument in the genre has likely been when it is used for effect or coloration.

Rabih Abou-Khalil is noteworthy as a stylist who has straddled the instrument's indigenous Middle Eastern world music and jazz to create an exotic musical hybrid.

"Journey to the Centre of an Egg" is Abou-Khalil's 11th disc for Justin Time and the first to feature him in the company of a pianist- Joachim Kuhn.

Boasting a strong jazz pedigree, Kuhn proves to be an enlightened choice. Equally adept at playing Bach as he is at free-jazz, this combination of breadth in style and ability serves as a primary catalyst for Abou-Khalil's latest exploration of fresh terrain as he continues to be unencumbered by the confines of arbitrary boundaries.

The duo shares songwriting credits for the disc's eight tunes, the centerpiece of which is the mid-disc pair of "I'm Better of Without You" and "Notwasheh and Kadwasheh," which clock in at 11 and 13 minutes respectively.

The former opens with a flourish of vintage Kuhn before giving way to an extended passage that matches Abou-Khalil with just the accompaniment of drummer Jarrod Cagwin.

The latter tune ebbs and flows as it traverses a broad emotional and artistic expanse and includes the additional rhythmic pulse of a second drummer as well as alto saxophone solo from Kuhn.

These two pieces are bookended by a half-dozen performances that also spotlight the trio mining wonderfully fertile compositional and improvisational territory.

"Shrewd Woman" conjures up an earthy blues vibe, "No Plastic Cups, Please" is a stream-of-consciousness piece that features our two protagonists engaging one another in a spirited musical dialogue. The Spanish-tinged "Mango" is sculpted in the spirit of John Coltrane's "Ole," and includes some of the duo's most intense soloing and interaction.

What makes this album unique amongst Rabih Abou Khalil CDs is that this CD features a trio. Rabih's specialty is his ability to weave many instrumental parts into a beautiful Middle Eastern song. On most of Rabih's albums there are a fair 7-8 musicians and often Rabih's oud playing is not the focus. Here with just three musicians, Rabih's oud playing and improvisational skills take the forefront. I would not recommend this as someone's first Khalil CD, as your first experience of this master should be one where he uses his masterful arrangement skills (Blue Camel, Arabian Waltz, Sultan's Picnic). However, once you have acquired those CDs you will find another side of Rabih here. This album features some of the tightest improvisation of any Rabih CDs. The pianist, Kuhn, is masterful and pushes Rabih in new directions. As with all Rabih CDs there is masterful frame drum play to tie it all together.

I'm a big Rabih Abou-Khalil fan and I'm always impressed with the musos he gets into the studio, and the amazing interaction that occurs. Pity I'm not a Joachim Kuhn fan, and I can't say this is one of Rabih's best. There are some good moments, like "Die Brucke" which chugs along nicely, but otherwise it sounds like two musicians having a jam one afternoon to pass the time, without getting especially inspired. Meandering and rather meaningless, which in my opinion could be Kuhn's fault. "Blue Camel", just to mention one better album that quickly springs to mind, walks all over this.