Search - Tim Berne :: Fractured Fairy Tales

Brilliant! Original, Unique, Bold!

T. Klaase | Orange Park, Florida United States | 06/13/2003

(5 out of 5 stars)

"This album is tough to put into words so I'll just say the compositions are stellar and the recording and mixing are (again) stellar. Joey Baron is in top form - one of his most inspiring efforts I've heard committed to the Compact Disc medium. Winter & Winter did a fine job with the artwork and packaging! There is absolutely no reason to hold off on this album - buy it today! Tim berne's sax playing is on fire as well.
This album is as new and original as some of Naked City's stuff when it first hit the scene. Don't look here for Naked City type songs though. I think these tunes are more complex and they're certainly as moving and memorable. This type of album is the reason I buy almost 200 CD's every year!"

Ye Olde Knittinge Factorie days

PH-50-NC | Southeast USA | 09/30/2006

(4 out of 5 stars)

"If this is elevator music (as one Amazon reviewer called it), then the elevator in question must be in a Tex Avery cartoon.



The 1st two tunes (the strongest material, for my money) have a sort of neo-Charles Mingus vibe, with strong, memorable riffs that mix up blues and bop. Joey Baron plays his behind off as usual.



The pieces after those are a little freer, and sound like classic Knitting Factory jazz (wow, that late 80s/early 90s Knit Factory era is about to become a Historical Jazz Period). The cello of Hank Roberts (who was playing in Bill Frisell's band around this time) and the violin of Mark Feldman (who has had long associations with John Zorn and Dave Douglas) will make this record sound somewhat familiar to those who have heard records by Douglas and Zorn featuring string players improvising, though both Douglas and Zorn's records tend to have more extensive, controlled arrangements.



In the mid to late-1980s, Berne, Zorn, and Frisell all landed major-label record deals around the same time, Berne being signed to Columbia (not a good fit). While Frisell managed to grow in a direction that was marketable for Electra records, Zorn and Berne were both dropped by the majors fairly quickly and have put out the kind of records that only indy labels are willing to deal with. (Zorn of course running his own indy for the purpose of dealing with himeself ;).) This Berne record is his first after his two Columbia releases. It was recorded for JMT, the label that would eventually morph into Winter & Winter. Released in 1989, it does seem to forshadow a lot of 1990s "downtown" jazz records. This record's predecessor is "Sanctified Dreams," which has the same band minus Feldman. This one's better.



Berne himself has since moved in a different direction (using smaller ensembles for the most part), and he has recorded prolifically despite having a low profile in the jazz press."