Bass CDs
Bassist/Composer Phil Palombi to Release “Detroit Lean”
Bassist/Composer Phil Palombi to Release “Detroit Lean”…
When Phil Palombi set out to begin crafting the album that would ultimately become Detroit Lean, the Grammy-winning bassist and composer knew that he wanted to do something different this time around. On his debut, 80 East, Palombi had deliberately created a record that, he says, “everyone would want to listen to, not just bass players.” For his followup, Palombi upped the ante, setting out to honor one of his musical heroes, the late bass innovator Scott LaFaro (1936-1961), best known for his work with piano genius Bill Evans. Palombi’s RE: Person I Knew—A Tribute to Scott LaFaro, marked the 50th anniversary of the passing of its subject and served as a companion piece to Palombi’s LaFaro book, 15 Solo Transcriptions.
“With my previous recordings, actually with most of my writing, I was always trying to write music that fit into a specific style or band,” says Palombi. “With Detroit Lean, I just wrote music stream-of-consciousness style—whatever popped into my mind. As a result, I think that I unconsciously channeled a wide range of influences and sounds that have been bouncing around in my head over my musical life. I didn’t really care what anyone wanted to hear or about trying to fit a genre. I wanted to see what was inside of me.”
Turns out there is plenty there to savor: One listen to Detroit Lean confirms that Palombi has evolved measurably as a composer, musician and bandleader. Recorded at the Clubhouse Studio in beautiful, bucolic Rhinebeck, New York, with Palombi’s core trio of pianist Matthew Fries and drummer Keith Hall, with guitarist Tony Romano guesting on several tracks, the album is the result of Palombi looking both toward the past and straight ahead for inspiration. “I was feeling a little nostalgic when I wrote the music for this CD,” he says. “Most of the titles correspond to events or feelings that I had when I moved to New York City in 1997. In my previous life, growing up in Ohio, I was a total gear-head. I used to rebuild muscle cars, cruise, drag race—all the fun stuff! The phrase ‘Detroit Lean’ refers to a style of sitting behind the steering wheel, looking cool.”
Once he knew where he wanted to take the new music, Palombi set about fleshing out the concept with compositions specifically tailored to the project. “For some reason I can’t just sit down and write a song for the sake of writing a song,” he says. “I need to have a real relationship with what’s going down. Sometimes I can look into the future and pull something from there, but most of the time it’s looking back and analyzing my feelings about an event or person. Last year I was doing just that, marveling at the set of circumstances and decisions that led me to where I am now. It really is a bit miraculous, actually. When you look back, you can see maybe a handful of decisions where, had you simply changed one thing, your life could have been completely different. I think it would be fun to be able to go back in time, choose another path, then move forward to see what would happen. It’s not that I get whimsical about the past as much as thinking about the past is a kind of mental straight edge to keep me moving in the right direction.”
The 10 tracks comprising Detroit Lean together paint a portrait of where Phil Palombi is today, from “Beyond the Wall,” built atop the idea that “we put up personal walls around us and can accomplish much if we get past them,” to “Standing Through Time,” inspired by an article about “how there is no flow of time, only a collection of ‘nows.’” The track “Sarah’s Theme” was written by Phil for his wife, the jazz pianist Sarah Jane Cion, and “Stay the Same” was penned by her.
“Every one of my CDs has featured a song by Sarah, and this is one of my favorite compositions by her,” Palombi says. “She even wrote lyrics for it, though I chose not to sing for what would be obvious reasons if you ever heard me sing.” Among the other tracks are “Take Both Paths,” its title a play upon poet Robert Frost’s The Road Not Taken, “I’ll Never Go Back to Brooklyn,” which Palombi stresses is not a putdown of the hipster-friendly NYC borough, and “Push-Pull,” a wistful love ballad that reaffirms the age-old case for opposites attracting. “The Phoenix” has great personal significance to Palombi, as it was written following the passing of his mother, while at the other extreme is “Alternate Side Parking,” about which Palombi says, “This song references the ritualistic evening hunt for a parking spot coming home from a gig at 3 a.m. The Amazon rainforest tribal effects were the idea of the mixing engineer George Petit. I think it perfectly captures the attitude that I feel when trying to find a parking spot in New York!”
With the songs written, Palombi called upon his secret weapon to help flesh out his ideas: Scott LaFaro’s own bass. Palombi had used it previously on the RE: Person I Knew sessions and at the Village Vanguard, the NYC landmark where the Bill Evans Trio had recorded its iconic Sunday at the Village Vanguard album shortly before LaFaro’s death. For Detroit Lean the idea was not so much to pay tribute to its one-time owner but simply to summon up the instrument’s exceptional sonic qualities once again. “For this record, I wanted to take Scotty’s bass and imagine what LaFaro might be recording in 2016 if he were still alive,” Palombi says. “What does his bass sound like in a completely modern setting? I just really like that bass! The first time I had the instrument in my hands it changed my life. I could play anything on it! Every note jumped out of the instrument, anywhere on the bass. The acoustic bass is a very physical instrument, and for the first time I felt like the instrument was invisible. All of a sudden I realized, ‘Holy crap! I need to learn a lot more about music now!’ Since I didn’t need to worry about what works physically, I could focus on what I can accomplish musically. Anything was possible, so I had to learn what that ‘anything’ could be! What I learned was it took more than simply playing the bass to get her to really speak again. She needed to be wheeled around the streets of New York again to fully come alive. About three months in the bass changed. It woke up! I couldn’t believe it. As a result, I feel you can really hear this instrument the way it sounded back when Scotty was recording with it in 1961.”
As important as the sound of the LaFaro bass is to the success of Detroit Lean, Palombi also credits his collaborators, the studio and the recording team that brought the music to life. “I wanted to make the recording its own artistic statement,” he says. “It was fun using the studio as a tool to bring out what I was hearing in my head. I strongly believe that sound matters. Imagine if Miles Davis recorded all of those great records in someone’s basement rather than the Columbia Records studio. Inside the studio, it was all about how the music was recorded.”
Detroit Lean: Great talents making inventive music in a world-class studio. It’s a perfect storm. And, most importantly, concludes Palombi, “I get to be me.” What could be better?
For more information on Phil Palombi please visit: www.philpalombi.com
Acclaimed bassist and composer Ben Wolfe is thrilled to announce the August 9, 2024 release of The Understated.
This evocative new album features a collection of new original compositions by Wolfe paired, with re-imaginings of some of the composer’s classic material, with a particular emphasis on the ballad song-form. The album features ten tracks, five of which are ballads – a bold move for any composer – Wolfe creates a cohesive narrative here that challenges the listeners perception of the classic ballad. The Understated features Wolfe alongside artists who make up the very frontline of modern jazz, including pianist Orrin Evans, tenor saxophonist Nicole Glover, drummer Aaron Kimmel, guitarist Russell Malone and pianist Sullivan Fortner.
Wolfe has always been drawn to finding beauty in subtlety. He perceives a certain tranquility and elegance in the Coltrane Quartet, Louis Armstrong’s Hot Fives and Sevens, the legendary Miles Davis bands and rhythm sections, and the music of Charlie Parker. While he, of course, revels at the immense world-building energy of this music, it’s the “other side” – the elusive, magical aspect that endlessly captivates him – the understated. The composer draws inspiration most from the ensemble work of these hallmark jazz ensembles. Despite the individual parts being extraordinarily beautiful on their own, the musicians in these archetypal ensembles play only what is needed to serve the music, paying particular attention to the band-sound more-so than their individual sound. The Understated embodies this ethos with a tremendously impactful ensemble-oriented approach.
Wolfe sought to continue the thread started by “Lullaby in D” from his previous critically acclaimed release Unjust. Wolfe indicates, “Something about that take was so perfect to me. It had been brought to life, and it had that ensemble thing.” Wolfe assembled the quartet who recorded “Lullaby” (including longtime collaborator Orrin Evans, as well as recent frequent collaborators Aaron Kimmel and Nicole Glover) and two very special guests, Russell Malone and Sullivan Fortner. The recording process took place in one room with no headphones or isolation booths, further emphasizing the group’s collective awareness.
This record succeeds in bringing Wolfe’s expansive music to life through extremely conscientious group playing. Nothing is forced or pushed; everything that needs to be stated is stated. The single from the album, “Waltz,” encapsulates the spirit of the project. Wolfe says, “I view albums like a complete painting, so singles have been difficult for me. This song is very much in the spirit of the whole but doesn’t give away the record.” The piece features a sentimental melody delivered with grace by tenor saxophonist Nicole Glover, before Glover and Evans embark on stirring solos dancing in and out of the tune’s harmony.
Other new original compositions featured here include “Ballad in B”, which perhaps best demonstrates the group’s stunning cohesion. This tune is a refreshing diversion as it features a serene repeated melody without overt melodic improvisation. The following track, “Anagram”, begins with Kimmel’s rhythmic refrains and a unison melody played by Glover and Wolfe and is a true ensemble piece. On this track, Wolfe shines with a lyrical solo. The moody short interlude “So Indeed” is a lyrical masterwork that leaves the listener wanting even more. “Beautiful You” features master guitarist Russell Malone on the track’s melody. The emphasis here on restrained lyricism is a prime reminder of the old adage “it’s not the notes you play, it’s the notes you don’t play”. Each pocket of space in between melodic moments leaves room for the listener to breathe deeper and deeper into the song. The driving “Triangle Man” features fantastic improvisation from Glover and Kimmel. The tender “Barely Spoken” concludes the album with a feature for pianist Sullivan Fortner.
The album also weaves in references to Wolfe’s past works, creating a personal musical universe. “The Poet Speaks” is the opening track on his first record, 13 Sketches. “Occam’s Razor” was composed years ago for a collaboration with a choreographer and painter, and was a much different composition in its original form. “Love Is Near” was originally found on The Whisperer. With ballads in particular, Ben uses voicings and sounds that represent certain things to him, intentionally referencing his other compositions to generate connections between his songs.
Wolfe’s tremendous compositions on this album are also influenced by the group of musicians that he assembled for this release. Wolfe remarks “One of the things these five musicians share in common is that not only are they true ensemble players, they will always play something unexpected and special.” Listeners will find calm and beauty within the ensemble performances throughout The Understated.
Visit online at benwolfe.com/
Bassist, band leader, and composer Orlando le Fleming continues to make music that crosses genres as readily as he crosses the Atlantic, with this new album ‘Wandering Talk’, to be released physically on 23rd August via the UK’s premiere jazz label, Whirlwind Recordings.
After 20 years in New York City, he’s back in his native UK, forging new pathways and renewing old partnerships. His love for the acoustic tradition continues unabated alongside his deep affection for the robust, muscular electric fusion that emerged in the 1980s, and he has received critical acclaim from media including The Guardian, Financial Times, Jazzwise, and All About Jazz among others. He has also toured and recorded with some of the world’s greatest jazz musicians including Branford Marsalis, Kurt Rosenwinkel, Antonio Sanchez, Ari Hoenig, and Wayne Krantz.
The Romantic Funk project was born in New York’s legendary 55 Bar to explore that legacy: now the new album ‘Wandering Talk’ builds on the critical acclaim generated by ‘The Unfamiliar’ (2020), building on the framework with a set of collaborators that brings together London and New York, past and present, acoustic, and electric, and merges it all into a spectacular whole.
Following the same principles that served the project in NYC, le Fleming booked four Friday nights at London’s renowned Vortex Club to workshop the music that would become the album, with a rotating cast of players which he honed down into the final line-up. Old London friends Tom Cawley (piano/keys) and James Maddren (drums) completed the rhythm section. New acquaintance Nathaniel Facey was picked from the ranks of the UK’s brightest young saxophone players. NYC stalwart Philip Dizack flew in from the US to play trumpet and reaching back to Orlando’s school days and forward to his own family, one-time classmate Chris Martin (Coldplay) and his own daughter Nadia combined to provide vocals on a special setting of Rumi’s poetry.
As before, the music combines fusion’s flash and fire with a contemporary sensibility. This time, Orlando’s questing spirit sends his superb band forward to investigate fresh areas of creativity in dynamic and texture.
Visit online at orlandolefleming.com
Album: John Entwistle, Rarities Oxhumed – Volume Two
Rarities Oxhumed – Volume Two is the second of the series of posthumous releases coming from John Entwistle.
Rarities Oxhumed – Volume Two is a compilation that was curated by drummer Steve Luongo, who served as John Entwistle’s producer, bandmate, business partner and good friend for many years. As Luongo states, “When I agreed to do two volumes of John Entwistle rarities, I knew volume two had to be even better than volume one. It is!” The collection of songs on Volume Two are from his years with the John Entwistle Band and include re-mastered versions of studio tracks including “Endless Vacation”, alternate mixes of tracks like “Sometimes”, and live tracks including The Who cuts “Real Me”, “Long Live Rock” and an epic version of “Young Man Blues”. The latest preview track to be released is the Who cut “Had Enough.”
Listen to “Had Enough” here: push.fm/ps/hadenough
Rarities Oxhumed – Volume One was quickly embraced by longtime fans as it featured gems like “Bogey Man” featuring Keith Moon, “Where You Going Now” (demo for the Who), and a raw live version of “Trick of the Light” recorded during the John Entwistle Band’s final tour in 2001. Deko Entertainment is thrilled to have been able to bring both volumes of this unearthed music of John Entwistle to the fans and forever solidify him as one of the greatest rock musicians ever.
For more information, visit online at dekoentertainment.com/john-entwistle
Mark Egan, Cross Currents…
It is exciting every time I get a new album from Mark Egan as he is such an amazingly versatile player and I never know what to expect (except for excellent artistry!) In his latest release, Mark has teamed up with Shawn Peyton on drums and Shane Theriot on guitar to bring us “Cross Currents”.
This collection of eleven tracks transports me to the Gulf Coast (New Orleans specifically). Mark’s fretless basses lay down a solid groove and lots of juicy solo work for this rootsy collection of funk, ambient, swamp-rock, second line, ballads, Cajun and even Indian Raga.
This trio is super-tight and the musicianship is flawless as each member has ample opportunity to shine. Even though each player is very talented in their own right, I feel that the collective energy is greater than just the sum of the players on this album. Each musician contributed to composing music for this project but the lion’s share are Mark’s original pieces.
I spent the summer of 1981 in New Orleans and this wonderful music takes me back to those fond memories. I participated in a wacky raft race on Lake Ponchatrain and this opening track elicits images of fun, sunshine, music, and great food.
This is another superb album that everyone will enjoy. Get your copy today! Cross Currents is available online at Amazon.com. Visit Mark online at markegan.com.
ALBERTO RIGONI’s New Project NEMESIS CALL Announce “Kingdom of Shred” Album, Feat. Super Talented Guests Such as Mike Terrana, Alexandra Zerner + Many Others
Worldwide known Italian bassist and composer ALBERTO RIGONI (soloist, BAD As, Kim Bingham, Vivaldi Metal Project, etc.) announces the new album “Kingdom of Shred” of his new project NEMESIS CALL.
Alberto says:
“Even if my latest album “Unexpected Lullabies”, dedicated to my newborn Vittoria Parini Rigoni, was released on June 4th 2024, I felt the need to compose new music (yes, I really can’t stop!). This time will be quite challenging because I’m willing to release an instrumental shred/prog/rock/metal/melodic album, that will feature many talented top-notch musicians such as drummer Mike Terrana, Alexandra Zerner, Alexandra Lioness, Aanika Pai (11 years old!), Keiji by Zero (19 years old!), SAKI and many others TBA/TBC). It won’t be easy to manage all such great musicians but I will make it! Are you ready to face a new prog experience? The album will be released in Digipack CD and in high-quality digital format approximately at the beginning of 2025 or maybe for Christmas!.”
As an independent artist, Alberto Rigoni has launched a fundraising campaign to support the project. Support at www.albertorigoni.net/nemesiscall. 20% of the income will be donated to Lega del Filo d’Oro (www.legadelfilodoro.it/it), an Italian association that helps deaf and blind children!
Visit online at www.albertorigoni.net | albertorigoni.bandcamp.com | facebook.com/albertorigonimusic | www.badas.rocks
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