Bill Bruford's Earthworks "Video Anthologies" Now on DVD

Last October, I was in New York City to see the only U.S. appearance of British drummer Bill Bruford's Earthworks at the Iridium Jazz Club. His latest group features the incendiary Tim Garland on saxophones, the ever stable Lawrence Cottle on bass and the marvelous young Gwilym Simcock on piano. Apparently, I wasn't the only Californian in attendance; a certain jazz writer from Santa Rosa had seen all ten shows of Bruford's five day stand!

After the show, I spoke to Bruford about a possible return to Yoshi's, and the status of any future recordings. Bruford explained that he would be releasing no new CDs, but rather a two volume DVD anthology; one featuring the current band, and the other featuring the original Earthworks line-up with Django Bates, Iain Ballamy and Tim Harries. Wait no longer, these fantastic DVDs are now here.

Bill Bruford’s Earthworks, a uniquely British institution, have been turning heads on the international jazz scene now for 20 years. The band has consistently offered a platform to the best and brightest young players, presided over by a leader with unparalleled experience as a drummer, composer, and leader. This two-volume Video Anthology splits the band’s career to date into two separate decades, roughly marking its transition from an electronic to an acoustic outfit. Volume 1 represents the work of the later and current “acoustic” editions of the band in the 2000s, and Volume 2 mostly represents the “electronic” origins of the group in the 1990s. Both volumes come with Dave McKean artwork and a 12 page booklet chronicling critical reaction at the time, and all material has been selected and supervised personally by Bruford.

Bruford's earlier Earthworks DVD, "Footloose in NYC", was recorded at the now defunct Bottom Line, and featured the first all-acoustic version of the group, with Patrick Clahar on sax, Michael Hodgson on bass, and the delightful Steve Hamilton on piano. His work on "Cloud Cuckoo's Nest" is just gorgeous, and one of my favorite pieces of that group.

Not to be out done, Bruford continues to unleash one brilliant pianist after another; first with the enigmatic Bates; Hamilton, the amazing Scotsman, and now Simcock, who certainly tickles the ivories on the new song "Youth". Having seen both Bates and Hamilton on acoustic and electric pianos, it was most refreshing to hear and witness Simcock continuously reach over and pluck his piano wires so percussively.

Footage from the DVDs have been available via Bruford's myspace page for a few weeks now, and the response appears to be very enthusiatic. For those who want to get a glimpse into the wonderful world and music of a man very often being described as Britain's version of Art Blakey, these DVDs are a wonderful place to start.

Bill Bruford's Earthworks Video Anthology, Volume 1 & 2 are available via Bruford's website: http://www.billbruford.com/news.asp

The Robert Glasper Experiment Comes to the Herbst

Energized and fiercely talented, both Hiromi Uehara and Robert Glasper are redefining jazz piano. The 32-year-old Glasper, will be sharing the bill this Saturday with Hiromi, appearing with his quartet and artfully combining post-bop with alternative hip-hop grooves. 2009 has been a banner year for Glasper, who helped take both soul singer Maxwell and rapper Mos Def to the Top 10 of the Billboard chart. His new Blue Note 2-CD set, "Double Booked", has been hailed as one of the finest releases of the decade.

The bio from Glasper's website tells it all, "One artist, two distinct but interwoven concepts: this is the captivating logic behind Double-Booked, pianist Robert Glasper's third album for Blue Note, following up Canvas (2005) and In My Element (2007). An artist who "unfailingly gets the feeling right" (New York Magazine), Glasper has made waves throughout the music world as leader of both the acoustic Robert Glasper Trio and the electric, hip-hop-oriented Robert Glasper Experiment. With Double-Booked the 32-year-old Houston native puts his enviable versatility front and center, emphasizing these different hemispheres of his musical brain at the same time.

Career-wise, this creates a constant balancing act, and on occasion literally being double-booked, appearing with the Trio and the Experiment on the same night. Such is the storyline that emerges on Double-Booked, with conflicting voicemail messages from Terence Blanchard and Roots drummer Ahmir ?uestlove Thompson, each pulling for a different Glasper band.

"Most people, if they have different bands, they do separate albums," says Glasper. "But I felt I'd be making more of a statement if I put it all on one joint." The result, in essence, is a snapshot of Glasper's life. "This is what I'm dealing with," he continues. "It's not like I play jazz but I also play hip-hop now and then. I'm in it, for real, both sides of the spectrum. That's my life. A lot of people go in stages—they might focus on trio for a long time, then they change or whatever. My thing is both, all the time."



The first six tracks on Double-Booked feature Glasper in Trio setting with longtime bassist Vicente Archer as well as drummer Chris Dave, who plays in Glasper's Experiment band but recently came on board the Trio as well. "It's hard to find that common thread in one cat," Glasper enthuses. "Very few cats out there are extremely convincing in all genres of music. There's always a wink-wink somewhere, like they play jazz really good but the hip-hop's a little strange, or vice versa. Chris has both sides down on an even level, and he keeps on creating. He and Vicente used to play together with Kenny Garrett, so they have a history that made the linkup a lot easier. He knows the Chris-isms and Chris knows the Vicente-isms."



As on In My Element, Glasper underlines the Trio's hip-hop leanings with short fade-in interludes ("little Pete Rock-isms," Glasper says) that function as short codas to some of the tunes. From the outset, with the lyrical flow and supple interaction of "No Worries," one hears what Nate Chinen of The New York Times describes as "spongey, changeable adaptations of hip-hop rhythm tracks…Glasper himself plays as if he's a living sample…in a kind of real-time loop." "This is a little ditty I came up with when I was in London at a soundcheck," Glasper recalls. "We played it that night at the show. I kept hearing people in London say ‘no worries,' and that seemed like the title. It has a real positive, bright, ‘It's ok' vibe."



"Downtime," set mainly in 7/4, evokes a memory of Glasper looking out the window at the rain—"kind of like the ‘F.T.B.' of this record, if you will," Glasper says, referencing a standout track from In My Element. Both "Yes I'm Country (And That's OK)" and "59 South," meanwhile, touch upon Glasper's hometown environment in Texas. The latter references a heavily trafficked highway in Houston, a cultural reference not unlike the Brooklyn Bridge in Glasper's current home base, New York. "Yes I'm Country" prompts Glasper to explain: "I have a country swing when I play sometimes, and I like playing that way." The vamp of the tune, an intriguing five-bar phrase, exemplifies the sort of off-kilter rapport that sets the Glasper Trio apart. "I love odd phrases that vamp," he adds. "It brings a whole different feeling than a regular vamp."



The Trio portion of Double-Booked culminates with an astonishing treatment of Thelonious Monk's "Think of One." In an ingenious and totally natural overlay, Glasper seizes an opportunity in last A section to quote Ahmad Jamal's "Swahililand," the chord progression that formed the basis of De La Soul's 1996 hip-hop classic "Stakes Is High," co-written by Glasper's hero and friend, the late beatmaster J Dilla. "Monk and Dilla are both passed away, so when I play live I sometimes say they're both probably in heaven, chillin'. Maybe they're talking about this arrangement! I always wanted to mix a jazz joint with a hip-hop joint but make it dope, not contrived. Chris's drumbeat is so crazy at the end, the hi-hat with the placement of the bass drum—you don't get this on a jazz record, ever. That's why I made it the last Trio tune, because it's a perfect segue."



From that point forward, we are firmly in Experiment-land, with Chris Dave remaining on drums—although the drum sound on this half of the album can be markedly different from the first. "4Eva," a live excerpt featuring rap icon Mos Def, leads us straight into another world. "Butterfly" is originally from Thrust, Herbie Hancock's 1974 landmark album. Hancock, as both a pianist and a genre-crossing innovator, is of course a huge influence on Glasper. "It just happens that every one of my records has a Herbie tune—it seems like I'm doing it on purpose," Glasper says. "I'm not. But I had to put this on the record because it's dope." Casey Benjamin's vocoder effects heighten the mystery of the melody, and a J Dilla beat called "F--- the Police" serves as a rhythmic foundation.



Benjamin's arsenal of sonic effects is at the fore of "Festival," colored by Glasper's Fender Rhodes, taking wild, digressive turns over the course of 10 minutes—the Experiment sound at its most representative and expansive. "Casey has so many pedals, it's a whole thing when he sets up, he has to go to the gig before us," says Glasper with a laugh, noting that Benjamin is playing only alto saxophone and "nothing's overdubbed." A short transitional piece, "For You" by Benjamin and drummer Sameer Gupta, leads into "All Matter," a striking, unclassifiable original by vocalist Bilal Oliver. Glasper offers: "You can really do this song in any situation, and it does stick with you. So pretty." Derrick Hodge, the Experiment's bassist, an accomplished composer as well as a top-shelf jazz and hip-hop sideman, contributes the final track, "Open Mind," also featuring Bilal. It's "a spiritual tune" in Glasper's words, with additional textures and voice elements from turntablist Jahi Sundance, the son of alto saxophone great Oliver Lake.



Hailed by listeners and critics, Glasper has also garnered the respect of the toughest audience of all: musicians from across the jazz spectrum. In a May 2008 Blindfold Test for Down Beat magazine, a fellow pianist instantly identified Glasper and praised him as "a fantastic musician," pinpointing characteristics of his unique style: "a harmonic maze, but also an insistent rhythm, certain turns and filigrees and ornaments, some of them sort of gospelish." With Double-Booked, Glasper further develops all these elements and pulls them together in a new synthesis, continuing his ascent to the top ranks of modern jazz artistry."

SFJazz Spring Season 2010
Hiromi Uehara (solo piano) plus
"The Robert Glasper Experiment" with
Robert Glasper: piano
Casey Benjamin: saxophones, vocoder
Derrick Hodge: electric bass
Chris Dave: drums
Saturday, March 20th, 8PM
Herbst Theatre
Tickets: $25, $40, $55

John Scofield Comes to Yoshi's

I first saw guitarist John Scofield back in the late '70s, replacing guitarist John Abercrombie in Billy Cobham's band, featuring the Brecker Brothers and again later with the incredible "Billy Cobham-George Duke Band" with bassist Alphonso Johnson of Weather Report. It was one of the most brilliant fusion quartets I'd ever seen, with searing solos and ridiculous prestidigitations; Scofield more than held his own. I would next see Scofield touring with the legendary Miles Davis at the Newport Jazz Festival in '84 and actually had the pleasure of working with him during his tour in support of his "Bump" album in 2000. Scofield returns to Yoshi's in Oakland this weekend for a series of shows along with Mulgrew Miller (piano), Ben Street (bass), Kendrick Scott (drums).

On his website, John Scofield is "considered one of the 'big three' of current jazz guitarists - along with Pat Metheny and Bill Frisell. His influence began in the late 70’s and is going strong today. Possessor of a very distinctive sound and stylistic diversity, Scofield is a masterful jazz improviser whose music generally falls somewhere between post-bop, funk edged jazz, and R & B.

Born in Ohio and raised in suburban Connecticut, Scofield took up the guitar at age 11, inspired by both rock and blues players. He attended Berklee College of Music in Boston. After a debut recording with Gerry Mulligan and Chet Baker, Scofield was a member of the Billy Cobham-George Duke band for two years. In 1977 he recorded with Charles Mingus, and joined the Gary Burton quartet. He began his international career as a bandleader and recording artist in 1978. From 1982-1985, Scofield toured and recorded with Miles Davis. His Davis stint placed him firmly in the foreground of jazz consciousness as a player and composer.

Since that time he has prominently led his own groups in the international Jazz scene, recorded over 30 albums as a leader (many already classics) including collaborations with contemporary favorites like Pat Metheny, Charlie Haden, Eddie Harris, Medeski, Martin & Wood, Bill Frisell, Brad Mehldau, Mavis Staples, Government Mule, Jack DeJohnette, Joe Lovano and Phil Lesh. He’s played and recorded with Tony Williams, Jim Hall, Ron Carter, Herbie Hancock, Joe Henderson, Dave Holland, Terumasa Hino among many jazz legends. Throughout his career Scofield has punctuated his traditional jazz offerings with funk-oriented electric music. All along, the guitarist has kept an open musical mind.

Touring the world approximately 200 days per year with his own groups, he is an Adjunct Professor of Music at New York University, a husband and father of two."

I'm not sure about the "big three" of jazz guitarists label, I can think of at least a dozen others who belong on that list, John McLaughlin, Larry Coryell, Ralph Towner, Al DiMeola, John Abercrombie, David Torn, Allan Holdsworth, Mike Stern and that's just off the top of my head. I will say this, John Scofield is clearly among the best jazz guitarists of all time. See him and his killer band at Yoshi's and judge for yourself.

John Scofield's New Jazz Quartet
with Mulgrew Miller, Ben Street and Kendrick Scott
Fri 8pm $24 & 10pm $18
Sat 8pm & 10pm $24
Sun 2pm (Kids Matinee)
$5 (ages 15 and under), Adults (with children) $18, Adults $24
Sun 7pm $24

Stanley Adler's "Arias Under Curves"

I first met Stanley Adler in 1980, during those heady days in NYC while performing with the art-rock group "The Same" and their mentor, Brian Eno. Amazingly talented, Adler would go on to audition for King Crimson, perform with Madonna, tour with the Crazy World of Arthur Brown and dozens of equally influential and creative musicians. These days, Adler makes his home in France, moving from electric and acoustic bass to his Steinberger 5 string electric cello, recording and performing with the "Symphony of Wrong", a delightfully French avant garde combo that must be seen to be believed. I caught up with Adler a year or so ago in Cannes, as he prepared to enter the studio to record this wonderful new solo album, "Arias Under Curves".

According to Adler, "Arias Under Curves" is the result of musical ideas spanning some 30 years, now arranged for multiple over-dubbed cello and released on the French Wriggly Pig label. The opening tune, "Les Oublandes", is actually an invented word and composed in 1988 while apparently riding on the London Underground. Adler always had a penchant for making up names; take for example his popular song from the 1980s, "Kevohei, Kevo, Tengaro".

"Benares Bounce" was written in 2002, originally for the group 'Dha'. It's an attempt to incorporate harmonic movement into the framework of an India raga, specifically Todi. All the bass notes are actually in the raga. "Five Hours North" was begun in 1980, but extensively revised in 1988. It came from an experience of a road trip from Washington to New York in a rain storm with the windshield wipers providing the rhythm.

"Shedding My Skin" originally began as a melody for "Sunrise In Your Arms", which he then tried to add lyrics that Adler described as "Horrible". He asked fellow musician Deb Swallow for help, adding words he described as "wonderful, aphoristic and tentatively cogent, while retaining a cryptic, gossamer shield!" Adler and Swallow performed the song many times as both a duo and trio with Keith Bray in the group, "The Lost Puppies".

"On Waking To Snow", is the oldest melody on the album, first composed in the fall of 1979. It was untitled until recently, but began as a piano piece influenced by Brian Eno. "Buffalo Dancer" is from 1980, inspired by a painting by the Native American artist Fritz Scholder. "Karagouna" was also written for the group "Dha" in 2002 and is based on a Greek dance rhythm Adler played with "The Button Band".

"Love Sine" consists of three related fragments spanning 18 years. Part one from 1988, part two from 1996 and part three from 2006, finally bringing closure. Like the title of the album, 'Love Sines' is a mathematical play on words, courtesy of his recording engineer, Eddie Castellan. The beautiful "Lullaby For Tim" was written between 2005 and 2006, dedicated Adler and Swallow's friend Tim Petter, "a multi talented and gentle soul with whom we performed in the 'Button Band' and the "Lord Mayor's Parade" in London.

"Kamancheh" was composed in 2003, originally written for fretless jazz bass. It is also the name of a 2 string Iranian "spike fiddle" and is written in the "maqam", in other words, the Arabic modal music of North Africa, the Middle East and Asia. The high drone is taken from Professor John Baily's duty licks on "Kabul To California". Adler's "Tromba Marina" was conjured up in 2007 and the name of a medieval bowed string instrument. This piece consists entirely of harmonics. According to Adler, "The low F string enables me to play a pentatonic scale in A and is entirely improvised".

"Metal Postlude", the final piece on the album began as the 'Lost Puppies' tune, "Terracotta Princess" by Keith Bray. The arpeggiated second part was written in 2004 as a study exploring the harmonic possibilities of the 5 string electric cello.

Adler's compositions on his 5 string electric cello are truly modern, technically ground breaking and hauntingly melodic. With his impeccable understanding of rhythms and his unique use of harmonic movement, this collection is a must for all alternative cellists and lovers of the cello. For people who like challenging music, expertly devised and constructed in a way that communicates emotion and atmosphere, "Arias Under Curves" is truly forward thinking music.

I'll never forget something Brian Eno once remarked to us back in the day. "Mark my words, one day, the world will know the name Stanley Adler!", he exclaimed. Thanks to the global, digital music age, a career spanning thirty years and a truly amazing album, they will.