Search - Kenny Burrell :: 75th Birthday Bash Live

Good but not Great from a jazz Giant

DJ Outro | Austin, TX | 03/07/2008

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Kenny Burrell is a jazz giant, having recorded with dozens of the jazz greats of the bop era and earned a formidable reputation as both a leader and sideman. You would think, then, that when he got Blue Note to record a live show dedicated to his 75th birthday, that he would pull out all the stops. Unfortunately, a lot of the tracks on this album just don't SWING. To hear Burrell's real talent, seek out the more unusual tunes in the playlist: Viva Tirado (tk 1) is a dark, seductive piece with a latin flair; All Blues (tk 9) is a laidback track you'll recognize from Miles Davis' famous "Kind of Blue" album; Footprints (tk 7) is a Wayne Shorter piece and accordingly moody and mellow; I'll Close My Eyes (tk 11) is a slow and thoughtful tribute to the late jazz organist Jimmy Smith. Tracks 1-6 are with a big band orchestra; the remaining have a smaller personnel set."