Chick Corea / Stefano Bollani: Orvieto (2011)

Chick Corea has long been a master of improvisation. Whether in a solo or group context, his abilities to create magic out of thin air have never failed to impress. He also pioneered the relatively recent development of two-piano improvisation, by working with players such as Herbie Hancock, Friedrich Gulda, Nicolas Economou, and Gonzalo Rubalcaba. For his first ECM recording in 27 years, Corea was teamed with Stefano Bollani for an advanced class in two-piano improvisation.

The two have been playing together since 2009, mostly at Italian jazz festivals. The performances captured on Orvieto are from the Umbria Jazz Winter Festival, where the duo played several nights of concerts. The musical program they have chosen reflects their eclectic roots. Between such Corea/Bollani originals as the opening “Orvieto Impression No. 1” and closing “Blues In F,” the pair cover a great deal of stylistic ground.

The first of these is the bossa nova king Antonio Carlos Jobim, and his “Retrato Em Branco E Preto.” Corea and Bollani’s fingers seem to dance around each other in the first few bars of the tune, then settle in for a riveting display of the melody, all the while never losing sight of what the other is doing. The near-telepathic interplay between the two is fully on display here. As Bollani has stated, “It is as if one mind were controlling four hands.”

An early highlight comes when the two tackle Fats Waller’s classic “Jitterbug Waltz.” The tune has always been a great piano showcase, and in this environment, both Corea and Bollani give it their all. Another universally acclaimed jazz legend is Miles Davis, and he is honored here with a rendition of “Nardis.”

Both Chick Corea and Stefano Bollani seem to have been looking toward South America a bit this night. They include a second Antonio Carlos Jobim track here, “Este Seu Olhar,” as well as a Corea original, “Armando’s Rhumba.”

With their concluding “Blues In F,” the two finish as they began, with some wonderfully inventive improvisation. Their styles run the artistic gamut and are on display not only on this final piece, but throughout the 75-minute concert. Chick Corea and Stefano Bollani are both outstanding improvisers, and the proof of it is right here on Orvieto. Here’s hoping they get out of Italy for a bit, and bring some of this magic to a US tour soon.

Tracklist:

1. Orvieto Improvisation No. 1
2. Portrait In Black And White
3. If I Should Lose You
4. Doralice
5. Jitterbug Waltz
6. A Valsa da Paula
7. Orvieto Improvisation No. 2
8. Este Seu Olhar
9. Darn That Dream
10. Tirititran
11. Armando's Rhumba
12. Blues In F

-------------------------

Depositfiles / Fileserve @ 320K

Chick Corea & Hiromi Uehara: Duet (2008)

Apparently Chick Corea and Hiromi push each other's creative buttons. Corea is always reliable, but on this recording he sounds like he's 25 again. And Hiromi rose to the challenge of playing with such a legend. What's surprising is how seamless their playing is. Individually they have very distinctive approaches to the piano, but here they often sound like one person with four hands.

Not every cut is equally bracing. There are a few that sound more like the players are coasting through old standards, but many of the pieces here are surprisingly bold, thorny, and out on the edge (which is just the way I like it). At times they sound like Cecil Taylor, which is quite welcome, but very surprising. "Spain" hasn't sounded this fresh in decades. What's perhaps most notable about the performance is the communication and interplay between Corea and Hiromi. They're playing in hair-trigger mode all the time, following each other's lead so instantaneously that at times it seems as though they're playing written-out parts in unison (though this happens in such unlikely places that you know it is in fact improvised). And that kind of super-alert attitude gives all the playing a tremendous immediacy and vitality. All in all a very rewarding CD.

Tracklist:

CD1:

01. Very Early

02. How Insensitive

03. Deja Vu
04. Fool on the Hill
05. Humpty Dumpty
06. Bolivar Blues
CD2:
01. Windows
02. Old Castle, by the river, in the middle of a forest
03. Summertime
04. Place To Be
05. Do Mo (Children's Song #12)
06. Concierto de Aranjuez / Spain
Duet: Chick & Hiromi
Fileserve: Part 1 - Part 2 / Uploading: Part 1 - Part 2 @ 320K

Stanley Clarke, Freddie Hubbard, Joe Henderson, Chick Corea & Lenny White: Griffith Park Collection (1982)

This unique straight-ahead jazz project unites three core members of Return to Forever with post-bop horn heavyweights Freddie Hubbard and Joe Henderson. Stanley Clarke makes an unusual appearance on upright bass, and plays it well. Chick Corea and Lenny White round out the ensemble. The set is strictly acoustic, beginning and ending with two Lenny White tunes, the lively "L's Bop" and the somber, dramatic "Guernica," respectively. Clarke contributes the catchy, mid-tempo blues "Why Wait," while Corea gives us "October Ballade" and Hubbard dusts off his hard-bop classic "Happy Times." Corea's trio featured on Steve Swallow's "Remember" breaks things up nicely.

Tracklist:
1 Lil' Bop - White 5:17
2 Why Wait - Clarke 8:12
3 October Ballade - Corea 5:36
4 Happy Times - Hubbard 7:14
5 Remember - Swallow 4:12
6 Guernica - White 9:36
Personnel:
Stanley Clarke - Bass (Upright) 
Chick Corea - Piano 
Joe Henderson - Sax (Tenor) 
Freddie Hubbard - Trumpet, Flugelhorn 
Lenny White - Drums
Griffith Park Collection
FileServe @ 320K

Miles Davis: It's About That Time... Live In Montreux 1969 (2008)

This exciting live set (released for the first time on this European CD in the mid-'90s) finds Miles Davis at a particularly intriguing point in his evolution. He had finished recording In a Silent Way five months earlier, and was just a few weeks away from starting Bitches Brew. His working quintet (captured during a seven-song continuous set at the Montreux Jazz Festival) at that time was comprised of Wayne Shorter on tenor and soprano, keyboardist Chick Corea, Dave Holland on electric bass, and drummer Jack DeJohnette.

In addition to performing versions of "Miles Runs the Voodoo Down" and "Sanctuary," both of which predate Bitches Brew, they also play the last versions thus far released of Davis performing two of his standards: "Milestones" and "'Round About Midnight." The recording quality is excellent and Miles Davis was in fine form for this very interesting transitional date which captures the trumpeter just before he permanently turned his music completely into fusion.

Personnel:Miles Davis – Trumpet
Wayne Shorter – Tenor & Soprano Saxophone
Chick Corea – Electric Piano, Keyboards
Dave Holland – Bass
Jack DeJohnette – Drums
Tracklist:1. Directions
2. Miles Runs The Voodoo Down
3. Milestones
4. Footprints
5. Round About Midnight
6. It’s About That Time
7. Sanctuary / The Theme
It's About That Time...live in Montreux 1969
Hotfile / Uploading @ 320K

Chick Corea, Eddie Gomez, Airto Moreira: The Boston Three Party (2007)

2007 Japan Release. Part of the Five Trios package, this outstanding recording features Chick Corea unites with very special friends, Eddie Gomez on Bass and Return To Forever bandmate Airto Moreira on Drums and Percussion. Great Trio and kicking music. A Beautiful homage to the genius of Bill Evans. This music was recorded live on April 28, 2006 at Boston's Berkelee Performance Center.

Tracklist:

1. With a Song in My Heart

2. 500 Miles High
3. Waltz for Debby
4. Desafinado (Intro)
5. Desafinado
6. Sweet and Lovely
7. Sometime Ago (Intro)
8. Sometime Ago (Part 1)
9. Sometime Ago (Part 2)
Personnel:
Chick Corea – piano
Eddie Gomez – bass
Airto Moreira – drums
Boston Three Party-to Bill Evans
Hotfile / Rapidshare @ 320K

Bobby McFerrin: Beyond Words (2002)

Creative vocalist Bobby McFerrin's return to Blue Note after a nearly ten-year absence indicates a possible desire for a return to improvised jazz, and in a way distancing himself from the classical works he had become increasingly associated with. Working again with pianist Chick Corea and producer Linda Goldstein, his 2002 album, Beyond Words, is reminiscent of the other McFerrin/Corea collaborations (Play, The Mozart Sessions), but somehow these mostly improvised works lack the spark that their previous partnerships have created. Ably backed by Corea's bright piano, Omar Hakim on drums, and Richard Bona on bass, the songs feel to be all the same texture for the most part, never reaching any kind of a peak throughout the album. Beyond Words is a moody and dark affair, with subtle layers of McFerrin's undulating vocals weaving in and out of the musical bed, but instead of sounding earthy and natural, the album is punctuated by synthesized instruments that pull the recordings dangerously close to smooth jazz territory. Unfortunately, by taking one of the most articulate players of man's earliest instrument and layering it in slick, fretless basslines and synthetic Roland XP-80 chords, it almost defeats the purpose of hearing his voice altogether. Still, it is an excellently performed and cleanly produced document of both McFerrin and Corea's abilities, ideal for gentle background textures on a night in alone. -- AMG

Tracklist:
01. Invocation (Goldstein/McFerrin) — 7:10
02. Kalimba Suite (McFerrin) — 3:40
03. A Silken Road (McFerrin) — 4:28
04. Fertile Field (Goldstein/McFerrin) — 5:44
05. Dervishes (McFerrin) — 2:15
06. Ziggurat (Goldstein/McFerrin) — 5:20
07. Sisters (McFerrin) — 1:22
08. Circlings (McFerrin) — 1:14
09. Chanson (McFerrin) — 1:30
10. Windows (Corea) — 4:01
11. Marlowe (McFerrin) — 4:08
12. Mass (McFerrin) — 2:40
13. Pat & Joe (McFerrin) — 2:11
14. Taylor Made (McFerrin) — 4:22
15. A Piece, a Chord (McFerrin) — 3:46
16. Monks/The Shepherd (McFerrin) — 2:48
Beyond Words
Hotfile / Uploading @ 320K