Search - Dave Grusin :: Kaleidoscope

Hard bop classic. (Not fusion. Not a soundtrack.)

09/06/2002

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Dave Grusin's second recording from the mid 1960s, a pure hard bop, real jazz session featuring Dave on (acoustic!) piano sounding very much like Bill Evans/Herbie Hancock. And the gods who comprise the group: Thad Jones on trumpet, Stanley Turrentine on tenor sax, Bob Cranshaw on bass, Frank Foster on tenor, with Larry Rosen on drums. Excellent, particularly for jazz listeners (who really don't care about Grusin's later fusion and soundtrack stuff)"

Seriously: You need this CD

Nils Young | Medway, OH USA | 02/07/2003

(5 out of 5 stars)

"When I was forced to accept my joining the collection of antiquities that included my record player/turntable (even the terminology dates me), I decided that my first CDs would be reprints of the first of my vinyl jazz music collection. Most of these were of music that I'd first heard on the Voice of America's Jazz Hour hosted by the late Willis Conover. I'm not sure if this music ever got the calm commentary of Willis' voice. Maybe I bought it because he'd written the liner notes. Either way, this is a "must-have" collection of rare music.
The first thing you'll notice is the interesting chord voicings. Dave Grusin, about whom I know nothing at all other than having heard this CD, has a knack for playing lines mixing Brubeck with Bill Evans and ending up with a very personal, recognizable style. This pays off either on the standards ("Stella by Starlight" is a particularly good cut to hear this) or on his own compositions.
And then there's the relaxed, unhurried melody lines. Ah, what a joy it was to hear this kind of music back when everyone was trying to sound like John Coltrane or Oscar Peterson! Today it's still refreshing. In fact, it's the kind of music that makes me wish that more of Grusin's solo/combo playing were available.
Equally refreshing is Frank Foster's sax playing. Sure, it's of the time but it's also lyrically juxtaposed against Grusin's comping. The best cut showing this is the first, title cut. Or you could take "What's This" or "Blue Monk" as examples of interaction between Grusin and Foster.
Thad Jones, as you would expect from a man who was part of a fantastic 60s big band revival, plays as lyrically as the rest of the group. In fact, maybe it's the lyricism that makes this music so beautiful on the ear: every cut has a sensitive touch. Thad Jones is part of that.
Another ear-catcher on this CD is Larry Rosen's drum work: Once, when I was listening to this record, back in the 60s, a friend who played percussion in a deepwater blues band asked me what the hell Rosen was doing. Well, he sure ain't playin' the standard cymbal riff behind everything, is he? No, he's not. Not then and not today.
This is a kicker collection of beautiful, collaboratively played, unforgettable jazz. Willis Conover, bless his soul, is gone. But this music - and Conover's liner notes - live on. You need this CD."