Search - Martin Speake :: Journey

Glorious world jazz

Jan P. Dennis | Monument, CO USA | 12/12/2004

(5 out of 5 stars)

"When world jazz works, as it does here transcendently, it can produce some of the most exalted listening experiences on the planet. One thinks, for example, of Omar Sosa's great duo with Adam Rudolph, Pictures of Soul. Or Royal Hartigan's astounding disc, Blood Drum Spirit, or Egberto Gismonti's Sanforna, or Safa, or Vira Loucas by Cyro Baptista, or Nascer by Peter Epstein. These are all fabulous discs, and there are many more, too numerous to mention.



Add to that company The Journey by Martin Speake. Speake, a British alto saxophonist of note, has joined together with fellow Britons Dharambir Singh, sitar, and Sarvar Sabri, tabla and ghatam. These three met, according to the liner notes, 15 years ago and collaborated in a fusion group, Shiva Nova, not documented (unfortunately) on record. A decade and a half later, they find themselves once again playing together. Thankfully, the British-based label Black Box had the foresight to arrange a recording session.



And what a date it is! What we've got here is an authentic coming together of two entirely different sensibilities, whose whole is far more than the sum of its parts. Speake, with his (Western) classical sax training, his wide variety of playing contexts, and his unique rhythmic sense and deeply burnished tone, locks into the Indian raga sensibility as if he's been composing and playing it all his life. But with his own distinct Western twist. Thus, this is neither "authentic" Indian classical music nor Western jazz, but something in between, something partaking of the best of both worlds but surpassing each. Closely following the form of Indian modal music, the disc nevertheless manages to operate completely within those rather confined parameters and yet achieve significant tonal, melodic, and rhythmic breakthroughs, due, entirely, to the genius of all three musicians involved.



And isn't that how the best world jazz works--a genuine jazz aesthetic magically, mysteriously, mapped onto an existing world-music? At any rate, that's what we've got here, and at the highest level of achievement.



Highest recommendation: it just won't shake itself loose from my disc player!"

Mesmeric - 4.5 stars

David J. Ohanlon | Lilyfield, NSW Australia | 08/17/2008

(4 out of 5 stars)

"This Martin Speake cd consists of a series of often trance-like pieces featuring his very round-tone alto sax complemented by evocative sitar & precise tabla playing.

The previous reviewer has summed everything else up perfectly & the only additional comment I'd make is on a matter of overall musical preferences - if you love Indian music, incense & meditation (etc) or quality exotic "mood-setting" music (as opposed to "background" music as it's far too good for that) then this is perfect as Speake's compositions & alto playing lends a brilliant new dimension to "standard" sitar fare (if I can be excused for such a generalisation); if however, you enjoy a bit of variety & dynamism to your listening, some of this music (especially Tracks 1, 3 & 6, totalling 35mins) can seem a little lacking in differentiation (therefore, depending on my mood on a given day, #3 sometimes gets skipped).

Hence 4.5 rather than 5 stars, but VERY highly recommended."