Water

Gregory Porter | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (May 11, 2010)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Motema Music
• ASIN: B003D5X3VM
• In-Print Editions: MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (17 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #33,107 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Editorial Reviews

Review

2010 Grammy Finalist: Jazz Category -
Best Jazz Vocal Album --Grammy.com/nominees

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Wonderful Music!, November 29, 2010

By 

Pedro - See all my reviews

This review is from: Water (MP3 Download)

I have seen Mr. Porter perform three different times. The last time at Smoke, last Wednesday. This most recent time, he had a smokin' band and he was up to the challenge. When the band and the singer challenge each other, and both step-up, it's a magical journey into the musical kingdom.

I bought the CD and I recommend it with unbridled enthusiasm. His voice reminds me a lot of Joe Williams, one of my favorite jazz/blues singers. He can interpret other people's songs- "Skylark", for instance- and does a beautiful job. But his own songs are the centerpiece of this CD. "Water," "Illusion," "Black Nile" and "1960 What?" are fine examples of the beauty, feeling, soul and social awareness that Mr. Porter puts into everyone of the songs he writes and/or sings.

As I was leaving Smoke, I told the owner that this man, in a fair world, should be filling up Giant Stadium. He should also be selling 100,000's of CD's. Buy one!

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Rare recording by a new male vocalist, January 1, 2011

By 

Samuel Chell (Kenosha,, WI United States) - See all my reviews
(TOP 100 REVIEWER)    (HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Water (Audio CD)

If you haven't noticed, female jazz vocalists have fallen upon tough times since the days of Ella, Sarah, Carmen and Shirley Horn. But unlike male vocalists, they aren't all but extinct. The scarcity of male jazz singers has less to do with the talent out there than with finding listeners who have any interest in it. Since Sinatra, Torme, and the occasional release by the iconic Tony Bennett, the only male vocalist to receive much attention is the gifted Kurt Elling.

Porter has a voice that is frequently reminiscent of Elling's, even if his scatting and vocalese are not quite up to that level as yet. Its full, slightly rough baritone quality has an "edge" that could easily overwhelm the spare accompaniment on a recording like this were the instruments--especially the piano--not miked exceptionally close and placed far forward in the mix.

It's a long program--over an hour--that would challenge any vocalist to sustain interest without the help of a full orchestra arranged by Riddle or Mandel. Porter fares better, perhaps, than Tom Vopat, whose recent Harold Arlen tribute album, despite the undeniable talents and appealing voice of the featured artist, becomes strangely wearing about half way through.

This is one of those albums that hearkens back to the '70s in its refusal to provide any relevant information (such as identifying the musicians). Nevertheless, the evidence suggests that Porter has worked closely with this rhythm section, which is unusually free and empathetic without seeming overly organized or merely "tight." (There were times I had to concentrate especially hard to find "one," even though the beat itself was clear and pronounced.)

The songs are appealing enough, but as with most original material these days, there's excessive emphasis on the Dorian, or minor, modality. Also, the vocal power has a tendency to overwhelm some of the sensitivities implied by lyrics expressing the tenderness of love, or the wonder and feelings provoked by nature. Only in "1960s What?" did some of that angry rhetoric seem entirely appropriate to the power of the words (suggestive of the 1960s notorious "Algiers Motel" incident in Detroit.)

Alto, flugel, and trombone are all used sparingly and tastefully. The altoist employs the virtually generic, tightly wound, "squeezed" sound that has been in vogue ever since fusion and New Age music became ubiquitous (where have the individual instrumental voices gone? the inimitable, "full-throated," embodied sound of Cannonball, Stitt, Desmond, Pepper, Woods, Bird--or Hodges?).

A highlight is the minimalist but highly effective accompaniment supplied by the pianist. He pulls off an especially beautiful and surprising key modulation in the introduction to Hoagy's/Mercer's "Skylark" and contributes a very simple yet daring solo on Van Heusen's "But Beautiful," in which his playing of the melody in the lower register with his left hand is reminiscent of the arranging of Gordon Jenkins, Sinatra's most frequent arranger after Nelson Riddle. On these two songs, as well as the last three vocal-piano duets, Porter is at his very best, elevating the lyrics to poetry, playing freely with the time, phrasing without regard to meter or occasionally singing way behind the beat without "losing" it.

In short, a frequently rewarding album by a highly promising new male voice.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Urban Jazz, March 9, 2011

By 

Andrew Ogilvie - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Water (MP3 Download)

Gregory Porter produces a sound that refelcts a new generation of jazz listeners.

I hope that he can make his way up to Toronto some time soon.