Customer Reviews

Portrait in Sound

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Portrait in Sound by Steve Davis is an excellent CD. It contains fresh new compositions, and very creative improvisations by all involved. It is not just a trombone record, but a great jazz record that happened to have been made by a trombonist.

Trombonist Steve Davis is yet another musician who has been associated with jazz icon Chick Corea. But Davis has put together a fine outing here that stands on its own quite well, thank you. The band that Davis has put together for this outing includes Steve Nelson on vibes, David Hazeltine on piano, Nat Reeves on bass, and Joe Farnsworth on drums; in addition, a couple of cuts were made with Brad Mehldau on piano, Avishai Cohen on bass, and Jeff Ballard on drums, plus Steve Wilson playing alto sax on one cut and flute on another. The music consists of standards such as "I'm Old Fashioned" and "Darn That Dream," an original by Chick Corea, and several originals by Davis.

Davis has a rich, creamy tone on his trombone, and a focused style of playing that communicates well. Some jazz fans may recall that bassist Dave Holland has put together a band featuring trombone and vibes (Steve Nelson, in fact, as I recall, and Steve Wilson played alto sax on one of Holland's CD releases); Davis has found trombone and vibes to be an interesting combination that he has sought to explore on this recording, with rewarding results. The cuts done with Mehldau on piano are also quite rewarding. The sound quality is good, making this a most attractive release overall. Those who have flipped over the Dave Holland releases on ECM are especially invited to give Portrait in Sound an audition.

THIS A GREAT TROMBONE PLAYER WITH GOOD MATERIAL AND AN EXCELLENT BAND...MY ONLY PROBLEM IS THAT I MUST BE ONE OF THE FEW JAZZ FANS WHO HATES THE SOUND OF THE VIBES..IT CAN TURN GOOD MUSIC LIKE THIS INTO IRRITATING LATE NIGHT LOUNGE MUSIC...IT REMINDS ME OF THOSE BANDS WHO USED TO WEAR TUXEDOS WITH GLARING FRILLY SHIRTS..AM I ALONE?