Customer Reviews

You & the Night & the Music

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Probably not.

Left Coast guy. Standards interpreter. Trio leader.

That's three strikes against him, right? Wrong! Make no mistake, this disc is a revelation. Whether or not it brings him the long-overdue recognition he so richly deserves is beside the point. Those with even the slightest knowledge of the history of jazz piano who encounter him on this transcendent outing will be forever fans--and, hopefully, will go back to pick up gems from his quite extensive discography.

One of the things that makes this disc special is the brilliant playing of Brian Bromberg on acoustic bass. A careful listen to his solo on "I Wish I Knew" marks him as a monster on his instrument. Combine that with the understated outro from the leader, and you have a perfect picture of the magic that routinely graces these proceedings.

The leader seems to recognize how tuned in Bromberg is on this session, as he gives him the first solo opportunity on the next cut, "With the Wind and Rain in Her Hair." And he delivers a stunningly vitruoso solo, topped, unbelievably, by the leader's staggeringly nimble yet entirely apposite pianisms and--topped off--by Pat Labarbera's tasty drum excursions.

Dancing, lyrical, sprightly, impossibly engaging--this trio outing shimmers with a burnished glory interactive fullness seldom encountered in jazz. Not to be missed

One of the best things about this polished CD is the wonderful full, rich, sound of this label "A440" recording. Deep bass & piano notes, wide deep soundstage, great image. A pleasant mix of swing tempo and ballad classics, too!

Alan Broadbent, Brian Bromberg (bass) and Pat LaBarbera (drums) have great fun with these new and old standards. Alan Broadbent likes melodies (so do I) and has spent a considerable amount of time in the last 2 decades with Charlie Haden's Quartet West.

Bromberg achieves the same virtuoso level of bass play he did on his A440 classic "Wood", his woody bass stands out when he's in front and perfectly accompanies piano and drums other times (as he should). There's no piano-bass turf battles here.

Broadbent steps to the forefront. His play sparkles. He sounds, for all the world, like late period Al Haig in his classic recordings like "Invitation" and "Esoteric", rolling off sweet rhapsodic melodies, punctuated by effortless rapid-fire "a tempo" sweeps, arpeggios, flourishes and 64th note glissandos. He goes out and he get's back in without ever missing a beat. He plays from the heart; they all do!

Doing standards, everyone knows the melody! So it affords the artists a true opportunity to improvise.

5 stars for clean recording, 4 for performance - under my tough grading system.

A440 - right on pitch!

This is an exquisite example of taste, interaction, and most of all up to the ceiling execution skills. Alan is great all the time taking care of each key, Brian reminding us the power of his bass and Joe with that old great rhythm and touchy playing. If you have enjoyed the aftertaste of a good wine, this surely will produce you the equivalent afterhearing!!.

Did not have much previous exposure to this jazz pianist but this cd is a beauty! Broadbent frolics along the keyboards in a casual,enveloping style that is warm and beautiful. Two of the compositions deserve special mention- I wish I Knew and Baubles,Bangles and Beads are beautiful melodies that really shine.

What a magnificent treat it was to hear this keyboard master in a wonderful trio setting. Alan is as good as any pianist out there and should be rated as One of The Best. Top stuff all the way with LaBarbera and Bromberg anchoring this masterpiece collection of some very good music.

. . . when I talked about Pat LaBarbera's "tasty drum excursions." As a kind and sharp-eyed Amazon.com friend pointed out, it should be Joe LaBarbera, not Pat, his sax-playing brother.

Many apologies to any I mislead.

"You And The Night And The Music" is one of the greatest musical productions ever. I was driving when I first listened to it, and it was so powerful, so exciting, I almost drove off the road. Alan Broadbent is talented on so many levels, it's uncanny. He's a tone painter who captures the essence of each tune. What a musical genius! And his sidekick, Brian Bromberg, is a giant in his own right. His bass playing is inhuman. By that I mean, what he does on bass is humanly impossible. It just can't be done -- but he does it anyway! I bought two copies of the CD, one for the car and one for the house. I need to have such beauty within reach at all times.

Only true heads will understand this review.
I heard "What's New" on XM and was immediately taken back
by the poor execution, sluggish, and heavy-handed, copy of Bill Evans phrasing. Other phrases resemble John (flying fingers) Costa (Mr. Rogers' piano player). This has to be said of those who haven't developed their own style.
No original performance here.
I had to listen to all tracks on this record.
Alan's style is bootlegged, like a cheap imitation of a fine wine.
The one star is for Brian Bromberg's bass tone.

a bit boring.... I don't know the musicians here. They are very good technically. Empathy, melodies, swing, ballads (good mid-tempo You and the night and the music). But, this is the kind of piano trios that can be boring, I'm sorry for the pianist fans. They have a rather good chemistry but not that much. Sometimes this recording makes me think of the least interesting works by Keith Jarrett. What do they tell ? What do they say ? What's the message? If you like space, wilderness, disorientation, creative urges, skip this one and try other piano trios, like Uri Caine's, Kenny Werner's.