Serious Jazz
Stephen A. Smith | Boston, MA | 01/25/2006
(5 out of 5 stars)
"One of last year's Top 20 was Enrico Pieranunzi's trio album with Charlie Haden and Paul Motian titled "Special Encounter." It was published by CAM Jazz, a label that has built a reputation for producing stellar music. Challenge Records has a comparable reputation; and if this album can hang on for 11 months, it's a contender for this year's list.
Pieranunzi is joined by bassist Hein van de Geyn and drummer Andre Ceccarelli for 14 tracks recorded over three days in 2001. The band has recorded as a trio before, and Van de Geyn and Ceccarelli spent years working back-up together for Dee Dee Bridgewater. Here, they blend like coffee. European musicians are often cheaply labeled "Impressionistic"; but in this case, the term's a bullseye. Often they barely hint at the original melody, and only briefly. To put it another way: this is one of those albums you buy for the music, not the songs.
Piano, bass, and drums is the most ubiquitous configuration in jazz; and the truth is, very few of them have a unique sound. This one does. "Live in Paris" isn't a conventional blowing session with constant 4/4 swing pushing through alternating heads and solos. There's far more improvisation with regard to form, and far more interaction than soloist against accompaniment. The closest parallel might be the cliche, Bill Evans's trio, or else maybe Brad Mehldau's Vanguard recordings -- except that I think these guys leave a lot more space.
The shortest tune is "What Is This Thing Called Love," at 4:33; most of the tracks clock between six and ten minutes apiece. This is exactly what I want from a live CD, because it's what I love in a concert: to hear the band stretch out, to hear them really dig into a tune and find something different from what they played the night before. This isn't every other piano album, but it is a perfect example of a live CD that brings you the experience of sitting in a club."
Few groups can produce this much high energy
J. A. Schwager | Left Coast USA | 04/16/2006
(5 out of 5 stars)
"Pieranunzi's group just packs the most in the least amount of time with an efficiency that leaves me breathless. Damn, they're good. No, over the edge good! May they be together and play and make music like this for a very long time. The album is non-stop, meaning one tune flows like a bubbling mountain stream into another leaving the listener to realize with surprise we're in new territory. New territory indeed. This recording is getting a lot of ear time."
Track Listings (8) - Disc #1