This review appears in the August 2011 issue of The New York City Jazz Record.
—
Eric Harland, Voyager: Live By Night (Space Time/Sunnyside)
Owen Howard, Drum Lore (BJU)
By David R. Adler
There’s no one way for a drummer-bandleader to approach a recording project, and these two highly dissimilar outings make it plain. Eric Harland, one of today’s most celebrated sidemen, debuts as a leader with Voyager: Live By Night, a furiously energetic concert document recorded in Paris over the course of four nights. Owen Howard, an underrated figure affiliated with the Brooklyn Jazz Underground, devotes his fifth album Drum Lore to his forebears, paying homage to the great drummer-composers of the past and present. While Howard’s is a finely crafted studio date with only one original piece, Voyager features Harland’s writing almost exclusively.
One can’t doubt the big heart and often jaw-dropping interplay of Harland’s quintet, and in particular the eloquent fire of Walter Smith III on tenor saxophone. Harland’s tunes have a visceral appeal, with anthemic melodies and charging, rhythmically off-center vamps that bassist Harish Raghavan locks down with impressive force. The set has a suite-like narrative shape, with seamless segues between a few tracks, as well as three “Intermezzos” — mainly drum solos — to serve as connective devices. Only “Cyclic Episode,” by Sam Rivers, seems not to fit the mold; a partial take, it fades out right after the tenor solo. (Smith’s ripping uptempo performance makes clear enough why it was included.)
Voyager does have its flaws. At 78 minutes it’s too long, and after a point, the huge crescendoing climaxes start to seem redundant and overly busy. The mix is also uneven: Taylor Eigsti’s piano is too far back, and Julian Lage’s guitar sound isn’t captured at its beautiful best. There’s a certain warts-and-all character to the product.
Howard’s more satisfying Drum Lore could be seen as a historical primer on the achievements of drummer-composers, from Chick Webb’s widely known feature “Stompin’ at the Savoy” to some fairly obscure modernist works: Jack DeJohnette’s “Zoot Suite,” Billy Hart’s “Duchess,” Al Foster’s “The Chief,” Ed Blackwell’s “Togo” and others. Howard’s arrangements bristle with creativity, the band swings and burns, and most important, none of this sounds like an assignment or a backward-looking tribute. It would be easy to mimic Tony Williams’ stop-time breaks on “Arboretum,” but Howard does no such thing. His vivid interaction with the soloists, and solid rapport with bassist Johannes Weidenmueller and pianist Frank Carlberg, would be a strong sell whatever the material.
Apart from trombonist Alan Ferber’s appearances on four tracks, Drum Lore is saxophone-centric, with altoist John O’Gallagher, tenor/soprano man Andy Middleton and multireedist Adam Kolker assuming varied roles. Smartly, Howard expands and contracts the ensemble throughout, giving Middleton a chance to shine in tenor trio mode on Denzil Best’s “45º Angle” (a gem from the repertoire of Herbie Nichols). “Flip,” a piece of classic ’50s cool by Shelly Manne, closes out the disc with bass clarinet, muted trombone and drums — an inspired departure from the original with Shorty Rogers and Jimmy Giuffre. Clearly Howard knows his stuff, but even better, he plays the hell out of it.
Comments are closed.