Customer Reviews

New Conceptions

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

 

 

We're all familiar with jazzers who map their aesthetic onto a Latin template: Dizzy and Bird, Cal Tjader, McCoy Tyner, Sonny Rollins, Miles Davis, Joe Henderson, Jane Bunnett, and Stan Getz come to mind as artists who've successfully done that.

But how about essentially Latin artists who map a Latin aesthetic onto a jazz template? Not as many of those. Danilo Perez, Edward Simon, Gonzalo Rubalcaba, Hilton Ruiz, Eddie Palmieri, Egberto Gismonti, and Jorge Dalto come immediately to mind. Interestingly, all are pianists (Gismonti is also a noted guitarist), whereas among the former, almost all are saxophonists or trumpeters.

Then there's Chucho Valdez, perhaps the Big Daddy of the latter group. Is there anyone out there with a deeper Latin rhythmic sensibility, a harder swinging approach, than the former leader of Irakere? Maybe Hilton Ruiz, but I don't think so.

Besides being the Latin jazz rhythm champ, Valdes has stuff going for him that NOBODY else does. First off, his latest disc features all Latin players. Not a name jazzer in sight anywhere. Usually, a Latin jazz disc relies on a least one or two noted Norte Americano jazz players, to give it credibility and name recognition among the main audience for this type of music. Second, Valdes is, simply, the ruling king of Latin jazz keyboard. Period. It comes out all over this disc from the opening notes of the first cut, "La Comparsa." Third, he does something I don't think I've ever heard another piano player do, namely, play Latin with his left hand and jazz with his right hand (check out his unbelievable solo beginning about the middle of Miles Davis's famous "Solar," and the feat is repeated in a short passage in "Sin Clave Pero Con Swing"). Fourth, there's some impossibly deep Latin groove hapening with this band. It's like these ritmo grooves are in their blood (check out esp. the rhythmic workout near the close of "Solar").

What's really going on here is what goes on with all the best jazz records: a tradition (Latin jazz, in this case) is perfected by the artist, then deconstructed, and finally put back together in a new way that both pays proper respect to the tradition and advances the music in new (and sometimes astounding) directions.

Thus, we get neither ungrounded, half-baked, wild expermention that sometimes characterizes the wooly avant-garde nor slavish deference to traditions that sometimes comes out of the Crescent City. Instead, we get absolutely mesmerizing jazz of the highest order. As you can probably tell, I'm wild about this disc, which I would venture to say is among the finest, if not the absolute finest, Latin jazz disc ever recorded.

In recent times some great pianists have emerged from Latin America; Michel Camilo, Bebo Valdes, Hilton Ruiz, Eliane Elias, Gonzalo Rubalcaba, and our man in question - Jesus 'Chucho' Valdes. This record, arguably his best ever puts him alongside Michel Camilo as the best in that group.

3 1/2

This is a perfect way to ease into some Latin rhythms and melodies without nose-diving into overused stereotypes.

The egregious pianism of Chucho Valdez is once more, carved in relief through this nonesuch recording.

But, let's go by parts. The bold arrangement of "La cumparsa" is filled of supreme splendor. The most personal and intimate track is "Nanu" supported by a cello in the main melodic line. In Solar we have to Valdez playing shaking hands with jazz and Latin sounds at once. You don't know how love is another emblematic track as well his personal tribute in Duke Ellington's memory, the piece begins with "Satin doll" and as you must guess "Caravan" is present too.

This work is a must have for all the hard lovers of the Latin stuff. One of the most remarkable albums of 2003.

Swinging rhythms, novel interpretations of some classics and as usual, outstanding fingerwork on the keyboards confirm why Chuco is the giant that he is in Latin Jazz.

OMG! This CD is so hot I don't know how Chucho can stand himself. I never even listened to Latin Jazz much before a co-worker let me hear La Comparsa. The first two tracks are my favorites, but the whole CD is great. As a classical pianist in the process of crossing over into jazz, I can appreciate the technical difficulty of what Chucho does, and I am very impressed.

With all respect to "Longboard," whose reviews I generally respect, this cd is awful, almost unlistenable. Oh boy, I can just see those fingers itching to hit the UNHELPFUL button. Why am I so repulsed by "New Conceptions?" Perhaps it's the selfconsciously "soulful" ballads, which drip syrup but not a drop of genuine feeling. Or perhaps it's the ghastly rendition of Solar, which exhibits protean chops but not a scintilla of taste? It is certainly possible to successfully marry Cuban rhumba to bebop solos--Tito Puente and Eddie Palmieri have done it many times. I've even heard rap successfully incorporated into Cuban music (Omar Soza, who is way more cutting edge than Chucho Valdez, if that's what you're into). Lastly, there is the miasma of smugness and lack of humility which hang over this project. This is the sound of musicians who are absolutely convinced that they are making musical history. Too bad. If Chucho Valdez concentrated on "just" making good music instead of showboating, he might actually be on to something. If you would like to read more reviews like this, check out JazzboNotes.com.