Search - John Medeski :: Marian Mcpartland's Piano Jazz Radio Broadcast

McPartland, Martin & Wood??? I don't think so.

Mark LaMaire | New Orleans, LA | 04/17/2006

(1 out of 5 stars)

"OK, so I've never actually heard Marian McPartland's Piano Jazz program on NPR. I've heard her play piano on a number of fine recordings and I know OF her radio show, but I've never actually heard it so I didn't know what to expect when I bought the CD. The album, which is a recording of her show with John Medeski as guest, spotlights an aging jazz pianist (McPartland) interviewing a musician who has become known for his creative, highly inspired and technically unorthodox style of improvisation (Medeski). The two worlds collide during their conversations (the album switches track-by-track between conversation and live piano performance). McPartland makes it apparant from the start that she is completely NOT hip to Medeski, or to the groundbreaking and immensely popular trio he plays in, and she seems largely out-of-touch with Medeski's whole concept of music in general. The highlights of the interview are comprised of the awkward and unintentionally humurous moments shared by the two (i.e. McPartland's suprise when she finds out that John Medeski can actually read music). There are some musical highlights, too, such as Medeski playing Harold Arlan's "Out of This World" on solo piano and an inspired treatment of the Ellington/Tizol classic "Caravan" with bassist Gary Mazzaroppi. McPartland is also featured with Mazzaroppi on a nice duet version of her song "Threnody." But all in all the radio program doesn't warrant being put onto disc and released. I was finally convinced to return the disc after hearing the last track...McPartland trying to keep up with Medeski on the MMW classic "Bubblehouse", and then, after finishing the song, closing the album by saying, with complete bourgeois indifference, "I think that was probably enough for everybody.""

A Broader Perspective

D.K. | Pittsburgh | 09/20/2006

(4 out of 5 stars)

"The previous reviewer did a very good job of providing a reasonably in-depth analysis of the performances on this disc, and there is no denying a few awkward moments in both conversation and improvisation. I think you really have to look at it for what it is, though, which is a one-off collaboration between two starkly contrasting artists that must have had little to no rehearsal. Medeski isn't that comfortable being traditional, and McPartland isn't that comfortable being experimental, but this gives the recording a spontaneous push-pull quality that I find quite interesting. Their respect for each other is endearing, despite McPartland's accidental jab about reading music and her obliviousness to a lot of more experimental music. They actually find common ground on "Money Jungle" by Ellington/Mingus/Roach which is very similar in spirit to this outing: Roach and Mingus the hard-boppers, and Duke the traditional, more than 20 years the elder of the other two. (In response to why he counted the tune "Caravan" off so slow, Medeski references the version on that album.) Even though they may not be the cleanest collaborations ever, I wouldn't go so far as to say that McPartland was just "trying to keep up with Medeski." At worst I'd say Bubblehouse stylistically clashes more than any other track, between Medeski and Mazzaroppi's dissonance and McPartland's firmly-rooted melodic tonality. Pleasant? Maybe not. Experimental? Definitely.



I guess my point is that if you're looking for something "in the scene" then sure, you'll probably be disappointed. There is no trance to be danced here. But as a fan of traditional jazz, the avant-garde, and pretty much everything in between, I have to say that this is quite a nice and thoughtful listen despite the obvious generation gap. I pretty much agree with the negative points the last reviewer made, but I disagree with his severity; it is perhaps worthy of subtracting one star from an otherwise excellent episode from an excellent show."