Yo Miles! More Than Just A Tribute...

Wadada Leo Smith (trumpet) / Henry Kaiser (guitar)

Yo Miles: Lightning (Three Records)

Yo Miles: Shinjuku (Three Records)

Originally released between 1998 - 2003, these two live recordings (a collection of tracks from albums Sky Garden, Upriver and Yo Miles) and were celebrated and derided within the avant garde jazz circle. Yo Miles was a series of three albums dedicated to the music of Miles Davis' 70s electric era material.

The albums might have gotten overlooked due to the plethora of Miles material that came out at the time (official reissues) and the Bill Laswell project Panthelasa (a Miles Davis remix album). I personally wasn't a big fan of the Laswell project although it has grown on me over the years. Yo Miles on the other hand, follows a different path. Smith and Kaiser assembled an all star line up including Zakir Hussain, Rova Sax Quartet, John Medeski, Elliot Sharp, Nels Cline, among many others to construct a dazzling collection of re-imagined versions of that era which breath new life into the already psychedelic, rock and funk monolith that Miles built over three decades ago.

Lighting and Shinjuku were two of the four releases that focused more on original material from both Smith and Kaiser. What's so amazing is, that the songs would easily sound at home on any Miles album from that era--especially Bitches Brew, Agharta, Pangea or Live Evil. "Cozy Pete," "Thunder & Lightning" and "Miles Davis--Great Ancestor" all exhibit that deep exploration for new sounds, rhythms, patterns and a direction that Miles was achieving with his epic albums of the time.

Kaiser and Smith seem like kindred spirits here. They along with the entire ensemble of musicians develop a synergy throughout the session that melds into one unified theme. You do get a spiritual vibe from these songs especially "Muhammad Ali," "Tsapiky Frelimo" and the all out assault of "Shinjuku" which could give Agharta and some of the tracks from On The Corner a real run for their money.

These two editions of the Yo Miles series originally came out on the label Cuneiform and almost as quickly as they were released they label folded. So these two records now go for a slightly hefty price tag if you can find them. Some stores like Downtown Music Gallery in New York City still have physical copies at a very inexpensive price.

Now in our digital age Yo Miles! Lightning and Yo Miles! Shinjuku albums are only available as downloads (you can find them on iTunes) but they are still potent and worth seeking out. Wadada Leo Smith and Henry Kaiser created a series which now after a decade is finally being truly understood (along with Miles' material 3 decades early) and you should investigate these two records fully. It's extraordinary and keeps to the spirit of what Miles had perfected. A beauty tribute that stands solely on its on a separate work altogether. Enjoyable again.

Jonathan Parker

Jonathan Parker Group (self produced)
* Only available as a download: Bandcamp
Jonathan Parker (alto sax)
Sean Higgins (piano and rhodes)
Curtis Ostle (bass)
Alex Ritz (drums)
Theo Croker (trumpet)
Lawrence Ku (guitar)
Andres Boiarsky (tenor sax)
Mindy Ruskovich (trombone)

Sensibility, buoyancy, soulfulness and refreshing. That's what you'll be saying after the first listen to "Clearyism", the opening track from the young talented new saxophonist, Jonathan Parker. It can also sum up the majority of his self released debut, The Jonathan Parker Group.

Jonathan Parker, a Washington D.C. native, spent his development years at Oberlin Conservatory. The experience was he gained in school with such mentor as Gary Bartz, Billy Hart, Marcus Belgrave and others is immense and it shows throughout his debut. But like so many of us it was his formative years that catapulted him to jazz. A chance encounter with an excellent Charlie Parker collection set Parker on the way to establishing his musical vision. After College he moved to Shanghai, not necessarily the first place you think of going when you are budding jazz musician.

But while he was there he spent a great deal of time shaping his craft with fellow Oberlin graduates. This probably turned out to be a blessing in disguise. There was no pressure the jazz meccas of NY, London, Chicago, San Francisco, Tokyo, Oslo etc., Parker could just play and experiment with sound and rhythm. The two year journey was capped off with a return to the U.S. and stronger outlook on his own music. But now the real journey begins as this young talent sets forth with an excellent debut and chance to mix things up across the country.

The beauty and freshness of "Clearyism" shoots out a you with all forms of joy. It's like a late night with Art Blakey's Jazz Messengers or for a more contemporary comparison, One For All. His group are smokin' from the outset. You really can't escape this track and therefore you have to listen onwards. And what you get will surprise you and delight you.

Shifting gears slightly is "CO86" a more romantic and some might say "smooth" R&B filled midtempo piece. But you would be fooled to stay in such a static mode over "CO86", Parker's phrasing is fantastic and shows that he can shift from hard bop to modern romantic in seconds. His band are incredible as well, Sean Higgins, really shines here on keyboards. He adds an element of Roy Ayer's soul that envelopes the piece nicely.

His group again show this soulful side to themselves on "East Lorain" which Ostle and Ritz keep a melodic soulful groove around Parker's bold proclamations on sax. It's a piece that has a late night club atmosphere to it but you immediately hear the delicate compositional structure Parker has created and that's what is enlightening for me. "Jacqui" is an elegant blues based ballad that see the group expressing itself but remaining within the confines of composition. Lawrence Ku adds a Kenny Burrell element that this piece that I think gives it an understated beauty. Parker seems to gain a lot of strength from each musicians as the song moves along.

While I know there are a billion new artists out there and there are hundreds of established artists out there. Our choices as music fans are endless. For those of you looking for something new and refreshing--Jonathan Parker might be it. A great new talent who's got excellent compositional skills and a cool head when it comes to the musicians he's learned from and the one's he has surrounded himself with--The Jonathan Parker Group is a wonderful debut. A beautiful balance of hard bop sensibilities and modern romantic themes.

The Jonathan Parker Group is currently only available as a download from Bandcamp. Probably the best way to get it. And I would recommend most artists if you aren't on a label this is the best way to get your music out there. We loved Jonathan Parker's debut and hope you will too. Highly Recommended from your friends at JazzWrap.

JazzWrap also took time to speak (through email) to Mr. Parker about his journey and many other thoughts. It was a long conversation but I thought it best to bring it to you in its entirety.

The album is a wonderful blend of hard bop and soulful rhythms (particularly "Clearyisms" and "East Lorain"). What artists or albums inspired you when you were first starting out?


Well, I’d have to say the first artist who really piqued my interest in Jazz was Charlie Parker. I was about 14 when my first saxophone teacher moved out of town and she recommended that I take from another teacher close by. His name was Bill Mulligan and he had recently moved to town to play in the United States Navy “Commodores” Jazz Band based in DC. Shortly after I began studying with him he told me to check out a saxophonist named Charlie Parker. Of course at this time in my life I was more interested in listening to pop radio, but for Christmas that year, my mother got me The Essential Charlie Parker on Verve Records. 


Even then I really give the album a chance, but I think there was one time when I decided to give the CD some play in my Discman. A lot of what I heard I didn’t exactly like too much but there was one song that immediately grabbed me – Confirmation. I honestly had no idea what Bird was playing but just listening to him play gave me goose bumps. Eventually, I just got hooked on that entire album and began to discover all the bebop musicians Bird was associated with. I suppose that was the one album that “opened” my ears, so to speak, to jazz. From that time on, my high school CD collection grew at a voracious pace – and it certainly hasn’t slowed down one bit since then.


You've traveled a lot in the last few years and worked with a number of great musicians. Has the experience of performing with such great talent in both America and China influenced your music or your debut?


I consider myself extremely fortunate to have traveled and performed abroad for the last two years. The whole experience was extremely beneficial for my own playing for two reasons - in Shanghai although the music scene is relatively small, there many extremely talented players who I was able to play alongside and the decent amount of work afforded me the opportunity to really improve my craft and become a stronger all-around player. Shortly after moving to Shanghai in September 2008, I was offered a contract to perform at a jazz club in Beijing from October through the end of January. This was a serious gig – we played 3 or 4 sets a night, 6 nights a week. When you play that much, you’re forced to become a much more consistent player.


As for the musicians residing in Shanghai, they hail from many different countries: Columbia, Brazil, France, Australia, Mauritius, Japan, The United States, and of course China. While I was able to perform alongside most of the players in town, I really kept close to the players I knew from Oberlin Conservatory. There are currently 6 or so Oberlin graduates playing out there and we all had our own little clique. One group that I played with in Shanghai was led by Theo Croker, a trumpet player and Oberlin alum, and we were constantly playing original music. For awhile, we had a weekly Monday night gig at The House of Blues and Jazz and Theo and I would both bring in music we had been writing to play. This was a unique opportunity to test out new material.


Theo has a unique compositional style – one that isn’t too easily categorized. He’ll write a lot of different material in many different styles. It’s hard to say if his writing chops rubbed off on me – our styles are pretty different from one another. But it was nice to be in a group where several people were bringing in original work. It made our band have a much more eclectic sound – the group wasn’t just the voice of one person and the drastically different compositions from Theo and me I think ended up complimenting each other.


One other gig that I played constantly throughout my time in Shanghai was at The Cotton Club. They have a house band that’s been playing there for a long time now (at least 10 years). Led by Utah-born guitarist Greg Smith, the group plays music from the American Blues and R&B songbooks. The singer, Jacqui “Sugar Mama” Stanton, actually just recently left us but she was a musical legend. Having performed in Ike and Tina Turner’s band, among many others, you couldn’t get more authentic than Jacqui. She was an incredible singer and musician and I feel extremely privileged to have play next to her for as long I did. This band was (and still is!) incredibly tight and night after night they delivered great sets and Greg and Mama were just always giving 110% up there on stage. Playing with people on this sort of level night after night really does make you a stronger player. And even though we weren’t playing straight-ahead jazz, I learned plenty from being there - whether it was how to play a short and sweet solo on a Donnie Hathaway tune or really getting my blues chops down cold on a slow blues in Db.


Your band sounds incredibly tight and seems to have a lot of freedom. How long have you worked with them?

Most of my band mates I’ve known for quite some time now. Curtis Ostle, Alex Ritz, and Theo Croker all went to Oberlin while I was there. We all played in different groups with each other throughout our time at Oberlin and had already developed some sort of rapport so when we all ended up in Shanghai, it was only natural for us to link back togethe.


As for the other members, Sean Higgins is originally from Massachusetts and had worked in New York City with Winard Harper’s group for several years before moving to Shanghai. He is a terrific pianist and he’s coming out of a lot of the music that I’m really into, so he was a great fit for the piano chair. Andres Boiarsky is a phenomenal tenor player who only recently ended up in Shanghai. Originally from Buenos Aires, Argentina, Andres spent a long time playing in New York City and he worked a great deal with The Dizzy Gillespie All-Star Big Band. I know he’s also done work separately with Slide Hampton, Claudio Roditi, and Dennis Mackrel – to name a few. I am very honored and thankful for Andres to have played on this record. And finally, Lawrence Ku is originally from Los Angeles and has been living in Shanghai for quite some time now. Aside from being a great guitarist, he’s also very involved in the music education scene in Shanghai and is the principal at the JZ School – an independent music school providing music instruction to Chinese and Expat children alike. I really enjoy Lawrence’s playing and thought he would be a perfect addition to four of the songs on the record.

What are your touring plans for this year?


Well that’s tough question… Unfortunately, moving to New York City meant giving up all the steady work I had in Shanghai and starting anew. I’ve been here about 5 months now and I feel like I’m only now beginning to really figure out how go about getting work. I’ve been fortunate to have linked up with fellow Oberlin alum, Andy Barnett who is currently living in New Haven, CT. and directing his own group – The Theodicy Jazz Collective. The Theodicy is a church group based out of The Episcopal Church of St. Paul and St. James that incorporates elements of jazz and contemporary R&B. We play regularly in New Haven, but this coming spring we’ll have a bunch of dates throughout New York City. I’ve also started to book shows featuring my own group throughout the city – we were just booked at Miles Café on May 3rd. Also since moving to New York, I’ve returned home to Alexandria, VA. several times to play one-offs with various groups around the DC area. I’m hoping sometime this summer to get my group a bunch of shows lined up throughout the greater DC Metropolitan Area. I recently haven’t had quite as much time to focus on touring because I am right now in the process of applying for graduate school. I plan on attending school this coming fall, but I’m not quite sure where I’m going to end up – as I write this, I’m on a train to Rochester, NY. to audition at The Eastman School of Music. But I’m trying to remain as close to NYC as possible for my next two years in school, so that I may still involve myself with the jazz scene here.

How would you describe your writing process?

For me, the piano is the main tool I use when composing although I do keep my saxophone handy as well. I try to always set aside a certain amount of time everyday to composition and general piano practice and whether I’m playing a standard or something more modern, the piano helps me find an idea to start tinkering with. It can be a certain chord progression or just a short melodic line, but once that kernel is discovered, I’ll spend a good deal of time extrapolating material from it. Sometimes the process is pretty fast – I penned Clearyisms within a day or two, but then it can also take quite awhile – Minimum Wage took almost two months to complete. I also try to simultaneously write the melody and chords at the piano. I believe that writing both the harmony and melody together will make a composition more cohesive. If wrote a chord progression first and then placed a melody on top of the chords, I’d be worried that the composition would be disjointed and just not sound natural. Harmony and melody are equally important in my mind and therefore deserve equal amounts of attention.

Have you been listening or reading anything that is pushing your creativity forward?

The great trumpeter Tom Harrell is one composer whose music I really enjoy. His music is at both times accessible and cerebral. If I had to recommend just one album of his, it’d have to be Sail Away - every composition on that record is impressive. I think it’s definitely too early to describe my own personal style when it comes to composition, but he’s a player who is doing something I’d like to try and emulate. In addition, I’ve recently been revisiting the music of Duke Ellington and Billy Strayhorn. These guys were masters at composition and arranging. I was just recently working on Prelude To A Kiss and Isfahan – these two songs are just simply beautiful.


And I suppose I should at least cite one alto player who I’m checking out. David Binney is a player who is probably not that well-known outside of jazz nerd circles, but he’s both a tremendous saxophonist with brilliant technique and a gifted composer who releases new work at a prolific pace. Binney is a guy with really eclectic tastes and influences and it should come as no surprise that his music is just as diverse. A couple of years ago he released an album entitled Cities And Desires, which I couldn’t stop listening to. On that record he collaborates with the tenor saxophonist Mark Turner and the results are a joy to listen to. I know he just released a new album called Graylen Epicenter, which I have heard a bit of and it’s definitely going to be the next CD I purchase. Compositionally, he has a very unique voice and although I feel as though I’m many years behind understanding what he’s doing compositionally, I find myself drawn to his music nonetheless. I hope that I can absorb some of what he’s doing and incorporate it into my own compositional language in the future.

A Rare Thing

The Thing with Otomo Yoshihide
Shinjuku Crawl (Smalltown Superjazz, 2009)

Mats Gustafsson (sax; electronics)
Ingebrigt Haker Falten (bass)
Paal Nilssen-Love(drums)
Otomo Yoshihide (guitars)

Shinjuku Crawl must be some sort of secret document. For me at least. It's been extremely difficult to find. I finally gave in and downloaded it from iTunes. Not what I wanted to do with one of my favourite bands. This is always been a band that I want to hear on the physical disc or vinyl. But for some reason the physical version of Shinjuku Crawl is now unavailable and the only way to get it is on digital. I guess for now that's fine. Because either way my JazzWrap friends, this is a fantastic record.

Shinjuku Crawl is built on two beautiful suites, "Shinjuku Crawl I-III" and "Dori Dugout Parts I&II" along with the short but enchanting "Uramando". This is first time The Thing have sat with avant garde guitarist, Otomo Yoshihide all as on group. This session was originally recorded in 2007 which makes the wait for its actually release even more painful. They have worked together separately in various groups, most notably in Yoshihide's New Jazz Orchestra but Shinjuku Crawl is a whole different affair.

For me it feels like a combination of recent Gustafsson projects with Sonore and Fire! wielded together. There are moments quiet minimalism as "Shinjuku Crawl (First Attempt)" makes its slow build through with just gentle/slightly audible taps on the drums and phasing in and out of Otomo and Gustafsson instruments. I almost wanted to Genesis P. Oridgide to step up and start singing Persuasion (a classic Throbbing Gristle number). As we began to make into climax of the piece, the explosion of sound begins. Otomo seems the perfect accompaniment to The Things wall of sound. The group are taking you a deliberately long journey.

Then "Shinjuku Crawl (Second Attempt)" travels through the wonderful tribal elements of Nilssen-Love drumkit and dynamic work delivered by Falten and Gustafssson. Yoshihide is almost understated except for his lovely feedback drone that packs a solid punch to the listener on first impulse but eventually delivers you to a soft landing.

While the entire suite follows the standard tempo conventions of slow, moderately slow and very fast, The Thing and Otomo have slightly warped this thinking by utilizing within each suite. So what we are hearing is in the traditional sense--Adagio, Allegro Moderato/Prestissimo, Moderato/Prestissimo. Okay cutting to the chase its a journey through slow, fast, midtempo/frenetic, midtempo and fierce. In short, pure beauty. And that's really how you can wrap "Shinjuku Crawl (Third Attempt)" with blistering variations you will most certainly been amazed by the pace and movement. Great stuff.


The calm of "Uramando" explores the atmospheric side of Yoshihide playing as it is paired with a more reserved backing from The Thing. Not so much an interlude as moment of reflected and watching where we go next.

And next is our denouement, "Dori Dugout" which the quartet drills further into the center of our cerebral cortex with some magnificent playing by Nilssen-Love and enigmatic dexterity from Gustafsson. This is brilliant piece which each member is performing and bombastic pace but the recording levels must be set up differently because eventually Gustafsson takes over the piece with the rest of group blistering away underneath. This is sound that you achieve only with a select group of musicians and The Thing are one of those select groups. Otomo Yoshihide matches this perfection with delicate beauty.

Shinjuku Crawl is now either out of print or unavailable in CD/Vinyl form but I highly advise my free jazz friends to download this (legally) from iTunes or Amazon. It is buried treasure that hopefully we'll see back in circulation sooner rather later. Highly Recommended.

Esperanza Spalding: Well Deserved

Esperanza Spalding (bass; vocals; b. 1984)
Chamber Music Society (Concord Music)

So Esperanza Spalding won a Grammy last night while I was watching the BAFTA's. This was a shock and actually well deserved. If you don't own this record now--you better by the end of the week. I decided to go back and take a look at what we said about Chamber Music Society last year.


I was trying to avoid this record but I finally gave in and decided what the hell, let's listen and see how it goes. Well for someone who really hasn't heard her previous two albums, I can say that Esperanza Spalding is definitely the real deal and does bring something different and unique to the table.

The Portland, Oregon native was classically trained which is very much on display throughout her newest release, Chamber Music Society (Concord). Spalding's has a terrific voice and her lyrically poetry especially on the opener "Little Fly" is spiritually moving and rich harmony. There are moments where her vocals remind me of nu-soul singers, Monday Michiru and Angela Johnson. Chamber Music Society is an extraordinary mixture of classical, soul, jazz and Latin themes that are expressed with ease and comfort of a talent that has been at it for years. But Esperanza is only 23 years old. Esperanza's complex rhythms, vocal delivery and mastery of the bass make Chamber Music Society a real adventure as you wait to see what's going to come next.

The freshness of record is also highlighted by the manner in which Esperanza allows her band to expand and take center stage throughout. This to me, is the sign of a great upcoming musician and leader. The work of pianist, Leo Genovese, David Eggar on cello and veteran drummer, Terri Lynn Carrington bring and exquisite shine to the proceedings (mainly "Chacarera" and "Really Very Small"). Esperanza delivers two wonderful interpretations that demonstrate her arresting vocal talents on "Wild Is The Wind" and "Inutil Paisagem" that took me by surprise but on second spin I was hooked. Spalding also recruits the Brasilian legend, Milton Nasimento on the self penned "Apple Blossom" which turns out to be a fabulous meeting of generations.

I have to say since I didn't know much about the previous two albums, Chamber Music Society took a few listens to grow on me. Now after listening, Chamber Music Society is ambitious, exciting, refreshing and easily accessible. It's not going to change the face of jazz but it is one more interesting contemporary jazz records so far this year. Well worth your listening time.