Music that gets stuck in your head (in a good way)
Ben Nevis | 09/21/2009
(5 out of 5 stars)
"As someone who listens mostly to the great, classic artists of jazz, like Clifford Brown, Bud Powell, Charlie Parker, and John Coltrane, it's rare when a contemporary jazz musician (other than Sonny Rollins) knocks me flat. Marcus Strickland is that rare exception, and this CD has some wonderfully inventive tracks that I hear in my head even when my ipod isn't on, like the Strickland originals "Cuspy's Delight" and "Middleman," as well as "Portrait of Tracy" and especially "She's Alive," a track so hauntingly beautiful, it may be worth the price of the album all by itself.
While this CD (with Ben Williams on bass, and E.J. Strickland, Marcus's twin brother, on drums) is all trio work, and one of his best, there are two others I'd also highly recommend: "At Last," Strickland's first as leader, and "Brotherhood," his second. These two CDs feature an absolutely amazing quartet, with Robert Glasper on piano--the Tyner to MS's Trane--but, unfortunately, they're difficult to find (they were produced by a Spanish label, Fresh Sound, which apparently hasn't done very much to make them available in the U.S., which is a terrible shame). This artist is so young, and his career so new, that it may be difficult to say right now which CDs are the most significant in his body of work, but at this point I'd have to say that "At Last," "Brotherhood," and "Idiosyncrasies" are all essential Strickland.
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Marcus Strickland makes his mark
Anthony Cooper | Louisville, KY United States | 10/15/2009
(4 out of 5 stars)
"There have been a few saxophone trio CD's out in 2009 and 2008. Some, like Joshua Redman's "Compass", are fairly serious, artistic affairs. Others, like "Idiosyncrasies" and Donny McCaslin's "Recommended Tools" have the saxophonist making an assertive statement about their playing. Pretty much every song gets right to the good stuff, with a catchy melody to start improvising off of. Strickland plays mostly tenor, but some soprano also. "The Child" opens with maybe a melodica and overdubbed horns to get a different sound. Marcus Strickland wrote five of the eleven songs, and they're as good as the covers of Bjork, Outkast, Jaco Pastorius, Stevie Wonder, Oumou Sangare, and Jose Gonzalez songs. Ben Williams on bass won the 2009 Thelonious Monk competition, and E. J. Strickland on drums is Marcus' talented brother. This CD is highly recommended.
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Track Listings (11) - Disc #1