CHRISTIAN MCBRIDE RETURNS TO THE PARADISE JAZZ SERIES WITH MUSIC FROM 'PRIME,' HIS LATEST NEW JAWN RECORDING

Christian McBride New Jawn Quartet

 There aren't enough fingers and toes on the human body to count the number of bands, and special projects the jazz bassist Christian McBride has formed and been intimately involved with throughout his hall-of-fame-bound career. There's his trio, big band, Philadelphia Experience, New Jawn, and Inside Straight groups, most of whose magnificence has been documented for posterity on Grammy-winning recordings "That Good Feeling" and "Bring It." On Friday night at Detroit's Orchestra Hall, McBride's New Jawn quartet trumpeter Josh Evans, saxophonist Marcus Strickland, and drummer Nasheet Waits performed an hour-plus set heavy on compositions from New Jawn's new recording "Prime." Inarguably the most cherished jazz bassist of his generation, McBride has a distinct propensity for designing bands primarily as a showcase for his bandmates. So although McBride is the marquee commodity, he affords his bandmates red-carpet treatment. The audience witnessed that last night. The band opened with "Pier 1 Import" and then moved into a free-spirited number that mixed pieces of a composition by organist Larry Young and one by the R&B group Kool & the Gang. There was an array of soul-numbing solos, starting with Strickland's Eric Dolphy-eques blowing on "Moonchild" and "Dolphy Dust." It seemed as if Strickland could tap into Dolphy's spirit at will. Evans's trumpeting the entire night was state of the art, and when McBride soloed, he proved yet again he walks the upright bass better than any current jazz bass player breathing. New Jawn's centerpiece, however, was Waits. When McBride introduced him, McBride asserted that the fire Emoji should be replaced with Waits's likeness because he's such a fiery drummer. Waits had the congregation roaring by the time he'd reached the zenith of his solos. New Jawn is as tight and sharp as barbwire, but the musician's virtuosity is what the audience probably relished most.

THE MARIA SCHNEIDER ORCHESTRA REVISITS GRAMMY-WINNING ALBUM' DATA LORDS' AT THE UNIVERSITY MUSICAL SOCIETY CONCERT SERIES.

Composer Maria Schneider

Suppose you attended the Maria Schneider Orchestra concert at Hill Auditorium Saturday night and expected it to swing through standards from greats such as Duke Ellington, Count Basie, and Gil Evans. In that case, you set yourself up to be disappointed. Not to say those innovators didn't heavily influence Schneider's career. Over the years, what distinguishes Schneider's orchestra is it straddles the lines of the avant-garde. That was apparent throughout the concert but more so when the orchestra performed "CQ CQ Is Anybody There, " which appeared as if Schneider had the orchestra deciphering a morse code. For those audience members hoping the orchestra would perform music from the American songbook, Schneider teased the audience, opening the two-hour concert with the standard "That Old Black Magic," but that was the only oldie her orchestra offered. The orchestra didn't run through it as initially conceived. Instead, Schneider had her orchestra strip "That Old Black Magic" down to the original surface and applied a new finish. Schneider has populated her jazz orchestra with imaginative, swing-driven improvisers such as trumpeter Nadje Noordhuis, saxophonists Donny McCaslin and Steve Wilson, trombonist Marshall Gilkes, drummer Johnathan Blake, and pianist  Gary Versace. Each of which Schneider featured during the terrific concert. The orchestra has all the music and star power of legendary swing-era big bands. As a composer, Schneider partly writes for a particular soloist, understanding every square inch of their chops. So on "Look Up," Marshall Gilkes was featured, and his solo increased the audience's blood circulation, and Steve Wilson on "Stone Song" gobbled up the notes like they were junk food. And when called to address the congregation, saxophonist Donny McClasin blew the auditorium doors off their hinges. The orchestra revisited music from Schneider's 2020 Grammy-winner "Data Lords." This live iteration of the project was equally inspired and eclectic as when Schneider initially unveiled the project. 

 

VOCALIST SKY COVINGTON CLOSES A FOUR-NIGHT RUN AT THE DIRTY DOG JAZZ CAFÉ WITH A SPIRITED SET OF JAZZ STANDARDS

Sky Covington

As a journalist who's reviewed jazz concerts in Michigan for many years, I'm embarrassed to admit Saturday evening at the Dirty Dog Jazz Café was the first time I've experienced the chanteuse Sky Covington live. I've been familiar with her well-built reputation as a multi-skilled performer skilled at Neo-Soul, R&B, and jazz. Her stagecraft, I once heard, is on par with the greats Billie Holiday and Sarah Vaughan. For Covington's Dirty Dog closing set, she sang jazz standards terrifically, backed by bassist Ruben Stump, trumpeter John Douglas, drummer Jeff Kennedy, and pianist Alina Morr. The hour set opened with the band sailing through Herbie Hancock's "Maiden Voyage." On that classic, Douglas and Morr fed the audience the song changes like appetizers, after which Covington sang "Satin Doll" with such warmth and aplomb I wondered if Billie Holiday's spirit gave her a pep talk before the performance. Like Holiday, Covington has a realness and warmth that immediately draws you in and never lets you escape. "Don't Get Around Much Anymore," "Green Dolphin Street," and "Afro Blue" were the other standards she and her band repurposed. Covington embodies essential qualities too many jazz vocalists lack. For example, she shared the spotlight with her band and didn't spend the lion's share of the set scatting. The audience experienced the breadth and magnificence of her voice, which covered them like an expensive quilt. The set closer, "Afro Blue," was the best part of the set. She had the audience jot down a positive aphorism on a paper she passed out. After she collected them, she mixed them with the lyrics of "Afro Blue." Before the song ended, she walked through the audience, touching people on the shoulder like a Goddess blessing them. In the 15 years, I've caught concerts at the Dirty Dog, that was the first time I experienced that kind of audience participation. It was overkill because Covington had already blessed the audience with her voice for a solid hour.

 

JAZZ PIANIST AARON DIEHL'S TRIO MOVES SEAMLESSLY FROM BACH TO BEBOP AT THE UNIVERSITY MUSICAL SOCIETY'S CONCERT SERIES

Pianist Aaron Diehl

Listening to the jazz pianist Aaron Diehl's performance Friday evening at Rackham Auditorium in Ann Arbor, Michigan, I couldn't help marveling over how damn immaculate and erudite his playing is. Diehl performed a spotless hour-plus concert with his trio, transitioning seamlessly from music by Johann Sebastian Bach, Miles Davis, Dizzy Gillespie, Chick Corea, and Bud Powell. I felt like I was gifted two arresting performances for the admission of one, with Diehl immediately establishing there were similarities in the great musician's reach and virtuosity Diehl performed Bach's work solo and the jazz compositions with bassist David Wong and drummer Aaron Kimmel. Kimmel is one of the more clever and tasteful trio drummers I've heard, and Wong has the science of walking the upright bass down pat. Diehl has a pristine household reputation, having won the prestigious American Pianist Association 2011 Cole Porter Fellowship, toured internationally with the Grammy-winning vocalist Cecile McLorin Salvant, and released three touted albums for Mack Avenue Records. Diehl opened Friday's concert with Bach's "Prelude and Fugue in C Major, slid into Miles Davis's "Deception," revisited  "Prelude and Fugue" but this time served it at room temperature in c minor, and then sprung into Dizzy Gillespie's "Bebop." Balancing the genres could've been disastrous in the hands of a less skilled jazz pianist and a less adept jazz trio. But Diehl pulled it off. He told the near-capacity audience the impetus to pair Bach and Bop struck him during the pandemic lockdown. He's test-driven the project in several cities recently. As the concert wore on, his interpretation of music became more captivating. After the intermission, the trio tore Chick Corea's "Tones for Joan's Bones" open like a birthday gift. On Bud Powell's "Tempus Fugue-It," Diehl's fingers raced up and down the keys as if Powell's ghost possessed them. The audience gifted Diehl, Wong, and Kimmel with an ovation that lasted longer than I've ever witnessed at a University Musical Society jazz concert. Had the trio not obliged the audience with an encore,  there was a high probability the audience wouldn't have let the musicians leave Rackham in one piece.

SAXOPHONIST RAVI COLTRANE’S TRIBUTE CONCERT FOR HIS PARENTS DIDN’T FEEL MUCH LIKE ONE

Ravi Coltrane

 Over a decade ago, I interviewed the saxophonist Ravi Coltrane for the weekly newspaper the Metro Times. Coltrane, back then, was established with several solid records on the market and a stint with the great Elvin Jones on his resume’. During our talk, I asked Coltrane why he hadn’t recorded his parent’s music, particularly his father’s John Coltrane. Ravi said he had the utmost respect for their music and that the best way to honor their legacies was never to emulate them. Sunday evening at the Paradise Jazz Series in Detroit’s Orchestra Hall, as I listened to Ravi’s band play some of his parent's signature compositions, I wondered what made him change his mind about dealing with their works. The concert was a double bill featuring vocalist Thana Alexa. Ravi’s set was billed as a tribute to John and Alice Coltrane, but It didn’t come off much like one. Ravi's set began late because the pianist Cyrus Chestnut was a last-minute addition. The series organizers invited Chestnut back to perform a 30-minute set to make up for his concert in December being interrupted by some mentally ill bigot who shouted a racial slur. Chestnut returning to perform four compositions didn’t make sense. He rushed through the set as if he didn’t want to be there. Ravi hit the stage at 10:00 pm after an esoteric set from Alexa. Ravi never talked much about his parents or gave any historical information about what inspired their music or if he had a seminal connection to the compositions his band performed. His blowing on“Turiya and Ramakrishna” and “Er Ra” was celestial and on, “Ole’” and “Wise One” Ravi's sounded worldly and aggressive. I attribute the concert’s highlights to the terrific harpist Brandee Younger. During her solos, Younger seemed hellbent on channeling Alice Coltrane’s spirit. Overall, the tribute came off as if Ravi didn’t have a vested interest in his parent's music.

JAZZ SOULMATES MIKE MALIS & MARCUS ELLIOT CELEBRATE THE RELEASE OF THEIR SECOND BALANCE PROJECT 'CONJURE'

 

Saxophonist Marcus Elliot and Pianist Mike Malis

Joel Peterson, the proprietor of, Trinosophes, the entertainment café in Detroit's Eastern Market, made a small mistake Saturday evening when he introduced pianist Mike Malis and saxophonist Marcus Elliot as up-and-coming jazz musicians. The duo known as Balance was at the café  for the release of their second recording, "Conjure." Peterson's statement was incorrect because Malis and Elliot passed the young lion stage long ago. Both are respected bandleaders and sought-after music educators. Recently, some of Elliot's musical achievements were profiled in the national publication JazzTimes. Elliot started perfecting his chops and cultivating a fanbase during his popular weekly residency at Cliff Bell's, where I first experienced the depth and richness of his playing. I surmised saxophonists Joe Henderson and Tina Brooks were influences. As for Malis, those familiar with this jazz blog know I think the world of him. He's daring and one of his generation's more musically diverse pianists to make their bones in Detroit. My point is Malis and Elliot aren't rising talent anymore. They're stars in Detroit. Their terrific album celebration started with a fantastic opening set by baritone saxophonist Kaleigh Wilder and drummer Nova Zaii. The opening set was a perfect warmup, with Wilder and Zaii performing improvised music. They had a magical connection, as if they'd been performing together since birth. Their improvisation was so expertly wrought that I was convinced they'd been rehearsed, not developed on the spot. Widler and Zaii prep the crowd's ears for Balance. Malis and Elliot fed the audience cuts chronologically, starting with "Conjure," which featured soul-awakening spoken words from poet Chace Morris. Malis and Elliot can swing with the force of a battering ram, which they demonstrated some on "MRA" and "Number Four," but the concert wasn't swing-driven. Instead, the central attraction was Malis and Elliot's virtuosity and how seamlessly it mixed. Witnessing the musical soulmate connection they've built reminded me of the classic duet dates by pianist Harold Parlan and saxophonist Archie Shepp. Or closer to home, the piano sax duet by the late Detroiters Kenn Cox and Donald Walden. 

JASON MARSALIS'S DIRTY DOG JAZZ CAFÉ RETURN WAS HEAVY ON LIONEL HAMPTON CLASSICS

Jason Marsalis

The last time vibist Jason Marsalis played the Dirty Dog Jazz Café, he unveiled a new band assembled to honor the music of Benny Goodman. Unfortunately, the set was underwhelming, partly because the band was still in its infancy and hadn't gelled. At Marsalis's return to the Dirty Dog, he presented classics the great Lionel Hampton wrote or popularized. Marsalis's hour-long set Saturday evening began and ended strong. This time, Marsalis was accompanied by bassist Noah Jackson, drummer Louis Jones III, and pianist Brendon Davis, jazz musicians who are household commodities in Detroit. The set opened with Lionel Hampton's "Airmail Special." Then, the band swam through "Sweet Sue Just You" and Eubie Blake's "Memories of You." Marsalis is a solid vibist who has a proclivity for dressing up classics. He's not as gung-ho as jazz vibists Steve Nelson or as showy and acrobatic as Stefon Harris. Still, there's an allure and savviness to Marsalis's approach, complemented by the excellent piano work of Brendon Davis. Davis's soloing was cutlery sharp, and the ghost of the late great Cedar Walton possessed Davis's left hand. Undoubtedly, Davis was the band's centerpiece. Marsalis prefaced each selection with a backstory, which wasn't surprising. A lot of jazz history is what you get at a concert by any Marsalis brother. The best moments happened near the conclusion. First, the band performed guitarist Pat Metheny's tune "So May It Secretly Begin" the way Marsalis imagined Hampton would've powered through it. Then, they spoon-fed the audience an ultra-modern version of Ellis Marsalis's gem "Tell Me," which was a fitting ending to a terrific hour of music.