Search - Hendrik Meurkens :: New York Nights

Let's face it, if you play jazz harmonica you've got to deal with the shadow of Toots Thielemans. German-born Hendrik Meurkens faces up with Thielemans well, with a fluent, saxophonelike phrasing. On this date, he's backed by pianist Dodo Maroni, tenor saxophonist Eric Alexander, legendary drummer Jimmy Cobb, and bassist Chris Berger. Meurkens and company deliver straight-ahead, no-nonsense jazz with strong bop touches. "I Didn't Know What Time It Was" swings with an Ahmad Jamal-tinged arrangement; "You Stepped Out of a Dream" and Charlie Parker's "Scrapple from the Apple" dance on bebop and Latin lines. Meurkens's lyricism on the ballad "My Foolish Heart" beautifully bridges Lester Young and Benny Carter in its phrasing and shows that he stands above the inevitable comparisons with Toots. --Eugene Holley Jr.