Customer Reviews

Stand

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

 

 

This is unreservedley the best jazz guitar cd I've heard since Bern Nix's first (& only cd) from the early 90's. First of all going back and recording jazz covers of 60's rock hits was a great idea. The choices, in almost every case, are unusual. 'Stand' by Sly and the Family Stone and 'The Letter' by the Boxtops were great rock, but not the grist for jazz treatments. 'The Letter' for example uses 8 quarter notes in the first two bars all accented pretty much evenly. Pretty boring stuff when stripped of the vocal line. Broom, instead of playing around the limitations of the song's structure, plays the intro pretty straight and still manages to make the theme very interesting. Part of how he achieves it is through his guitars sound-big vivid articulated notes played a bit flat, very little loud/soft dynamics, and what seems to be a sort of unique do-it-yourself understanding of chord changes. If I have any reservations it's with the drummer..or I should say the drums. I hear the same splash of cymbal on all the uptempo numbers..no variation in tone or attack and after awhile I have to force myself to tune it out. But hey, this is very minor stuff compared to the huge rewards Broom delivers. I'd love to see him perform live in a concert setting. Stunning music.

With "Stand," Bobby Broom has recorded powerful interpretations of some well known 60s hits, which the artist identifies as having affected him greatly as a youngster. I must be about the same age as Broom, for these songs were the soundtrack of my youth as well.

Broom's renditions remind me how great these melodies are, and while I certainly feel nostalgia while listening, mostly I hear the guitarist's deep emotional commitment and intelligent variations upon the themes. Broom and the band came up with creative arrangements that make even the most familiar melodies sound fresh. Frankly, I was worried about hearing "The House of the Rising Sun" yet again, but even that warhorse works here!

This performance looks affectionately to the past without being overly sentimental. And its superb improvisations keep you focused in the here and now. That's art.

I enjoyed this cd quite a bit. It is not one of those life-altering recordings that makes you rethink the way you've been playing and listing to music, but it is a very solid performance. The band swings and drives through the tunes. Broom really gets some of these tunes sounding better than I've ever heard them. The surprise was how great Monday, Monday sounded. It's such a square tune, but it sounds really hip and bluesy. Not all of the songs on this cd come out great, but of all the new guitar cds, this one of my favorites.

Bobby Broom's "Stand" is a fine example of how an extremely talented and gifted musician can transform pop standards from the 1960's and 1970's into very insightful, tasteful and exciting jazz improvisation. Bobby's technical and emotional treatment of these relatively new song standards compels me to call him the Sonny Rollins of Guitar Players. My recommendation? If you like/love jazz guitar, Bobby Broom's music deserves your attention.

What I love about this CD is how different each song is from the original. Using the original, as an artist uses a piece of canvas, Bobby Broom then proceeds to go and roam far and wide, taking his band members with him, but always returning to the original interpretation, as to remind the listener of it's existence. My personal favourites are `House of the Rising Sun, I will, Stand', but I normally let the whole CD play and just enjoy. It took me a while to get into, but I'm glad I made the effort.

Bobby Broom and his trio perform superbly both on this CD and live on Tuesdays at Pete Miller's in Evanson, IL. If you are lucky enough to see them live, you will surely purchase this CD. I've also had the privelage of meeting the trio and they are very warm, friendly people. I highly recommend this CD and seeing them perform.