Search - Harry Pickens :: Passionate Ballads

This dude is the man

11/07/2000

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I don't normally listen to jazz, but when I heard this guy in concert, I was amazed and bought his CD immediately after the concert. This CD is simply Harry Pickens soloing on the piano, and is the most relaxing and calm jazz I have ever heard. Also, talking to him is also a unique opportunity because his ideas concerning the genius in every one of us, and concerning the use of music in every day life are very motivational and helpful."

Passionately Rendered

S. Puzzo | East Hampton, CT | 10/30/2005

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I fell in love with this man when I heard his version of "Blame It On My Youth." It has to be THE most beautiful piece I have ever heard. It still literally brings tears to my eyes, even after playing it hundreds of times. While the other songs are also lovingly presented, this song alone is worth the price of admission."

Sabotaged genius

James M. Ennes | 11/26/2005

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Passionate Ballads is one of the most compelling and appealing solo jazz piano albums I have ever heard, and I have been a jazz fan for a very long time. Harry Pickens is a master at what he does, which makes me wonder where he has been. The man is a master. He is spectacular. He deserves to be better known and more widely heard.



As a jazz artist, his interpretations are the very essence of jazz, especially in the almost painfully slow ballads that populate this album. I find myself holding my breath waiting for the next note, which is never exactly the note I expect, but always the perfect choice. This is an album that can be heard over and over without growing stale.



Yet, it has one great flaw. A hacker in the audience interrupts the opening track at the first note with a wracking cough that almost destroys the song. It is so disrupting that I find myself skipping the entire track. Some artists might have stopped at that point and started over for the sake of the recording. Yet the saboteur persists and can be heard hacking in the background throughout the album, disrupting the music and destroying the mood. This is all the more disruptive because of the small room. Someone should have asked the hacker to leave. Some judicious cutting should have removed those disruptive noises. Perhaps that can be done on another release. I hope so. I would buy another copy if the interruptions could be removed.

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