Dave Holland & Lionel Loueke: United (Edition EDN1249)
Guitarist Lionel Loueke hails from Benin, West Africa and his roots are instantly evident here. His playing sounds deceptively simplistic but it’s actually subtly complex and benefits from additional eclectic influences. Unsurprisingly, this in-demand musician has collaborated with the likes of Terence Blanchard, Charlie Haden and Herbie Hancock. Duetting here with bass legend Dave Holland, the results are captivating.
Loueke wrote all the tunes on the album save for Wayne Shorter’s title track which showcases Loueke’s prodigious jazz chops whilst demonstrating how the duo seamlessly and near telepathically changes tempo without the aid of percussive augmentation. West African guitar music has its own characteristic sound but Loueke takes it one step further, often adding vocals, so the result as heard on, say, Essaouira is folky and on Yaoundé there’s almost a country & western twang to it.
The delicate Chant benefits from the essential anchoring provided by Holland’s sonorous bass. The gorgeous ballad Life Goes On has a Bill Frisell feel, with space for a Holland solo and is so perfectly constructed it could become a modern-day standard. Stranger In A Mirror has Loueke’s multi-tracked vocals emulating a choir whilst all the while Holland’s bass provides a vital searching contrapuntal line. This contrasts sharply with the funky yet deft Hideland or Tranxit, the latter propelled by Holland’s groove-laden bass lines. It’s no exaggeration to say that Loueke sounds like no-one else and is one of the most imaginative guitarists around.
Nick Costley-White: Poncha (Ubuntu UBU0188)
Guitarist Nick Costley-White’s third album is a palpable hit. Whilst the seven numbers on this record don’t immediately jump out in a histrionic cascade of notes or volume, the beguiling tunes are unarguably satisfying and memorable. This is all achieved using subtlety rather than force and is paradoxically all the stronger for that. Costley-White has taken a different but very welcome approach incorporating melody, harmony and his ability to write intelligent and engaging compositions unlike the compulsive shredders or the chronically abstruse. The result is a set which captivates rather than alienates.
Costley-White’s choice of personnel for his quartet is another factor in the success of this album. Saxophonist Julian Siegel provides the perfect foil without overshadowing the guitarist and Conor Chaplin on bass and James Maddren on drums are fast becoming two of the most indispensable sidemen on the contemporary British jazz scene. The four musicians meld together as one seamless unit and sound like they’ve been playing together for years.
The seven tracks vary in style from the relaxed Latin-tinged Gozo to the infectious jauntiness of Noites No Porao (Nights In The Basement). Siegel’s bluesy tenor work on Inside Good, Outside Bad is perfectly complemented by Costley-White’s comping, followed by a liquid guitar solo and Chaplin’s refined pizzicato bass outing. The ebullient, tightly arranged You Sod! perfectly illustrates how the two lead instruments work together, both with unison phrases and harmony, backed by the ultra-tight rhythm section. Poncha grows on the listener with each play.
Marton Juhasz: Metropolis (Unit Records UTR 5189)
Hungarian-born and now Swiss resident drummer Marton Juhasz has assembled a quintet that emulates the jazz fusion sound of the 1970s. Unsurprisingly, Juhasz was influenced by Herbie Hancock’s Headhunters. But the music here could just as easily be inspired by the likes of Weather Report, Yellowjackets, The Rippingtons or even The Brecker Brothers.
Juhasz, who graduated summa cum laude from Berklee College of Music in 2011, has collaborated with the likes of Lionel Loueke, Byron Wallen and Jorge Rossy. Juhasz played on the Bacsó Kristóf Trio album Pannon Blue (BMC Records, 2016) featuring Loueke, which was awarded Best Hungarian Jazz Album in 2017.
Ancestral Drift is characterised by an off-kilter yet insistently hypnotic drum beat which immediately transcends any fusionesque clichés. After a more conventional solo break, the odd beat returns but at a faster tempo. Brazilian guitarist Fabio Vitolo leads on Helio, carving a satisfyingly overdriven line throughout the number. Vitolo’s electrifying guitar is also heard on the raucous, time-shifting closer Mr Busyman Goes On Holiday. Jérémie Krüttli holds down an eccentric bass line on the oddly metered Radar, which is propelled by Juhasz’s flailing drums. The eight groove-laden tunes on the album each benefit from their individual uniqueness but ultimately the unifying factor is Juhasz’s florid, sinewy drumming and taut, compelling compositions.
Dave Stryker: Stryker With Strings Goes To The Movies (Strikezone Records 8827)
The obvious comparator to any jazz guitar with strings record would surely be Wes Montgomery’s clutch of orchestra-enhanced albums such as Fusion! (Riverside, 1963), Tequila (Verve, 1966) and A Day In The Life (A&M, 1967). With these less conventional forays into jazz-meets-classics-(ish), there is always a danger that the results will descend into schmaltz. Happily, like Montgomery, guitarist Dave Stryker, has not fallen into this trap.
Inspired by the Stryker trio’s tribute concert, Wes Montgomery At 100, this follow-up to Groove Street (Strikezone, 2024) takes a different approach to the guitarist’s usual oeuvre. The selection of tracks, all taken from movie titles or incidental themes, reflects a broad stylistic range. The bluesy jazz of Flirtibird from Ellington’s Anatomy Of A Murder evinces the meatiness of the brass and the lushness of the strings. On the other end of the spectrum Rodgers and Hammerstein’s Edelweiss from The Sound Of Music is given a respectful, engaging reading.
Of the four guest soloists featured, violinist Sara Caswell, heard on In Your Eyes (from Say Anything) and Low Key Lightly (from Anatomy Of A Murder) is exceptionally affecting. Stryker’s renditions of Cavatina from The Deer Hunter, John Barry’s You Only Live Twice and the appropriately dramatic take on Isaac Hayes Theme From Shaft all work remarkably well. Actually, all 11 numbers work very well, conducted and superbly arranged by Brent Wallarab, who co-led the Buselli-Wallarab Jazz Orchestra for three decades.
This all goes to prove that Stryker is versatile enough to embrace tasteful interpretations of well-known cinematic gems, enhancing them with his skilful playing.
