Finally released in 2013 is George Colligan’s “The Facts.” It was recorded in October of 2011 during a half-day session in the studio with some of Colligan’s old band-mates from the Mingus Big Band. George confesses that it was mostly sight-reading while recording. And it is phenomenal.

Making up the quartet are Boris Kozlov on bass, Jaleel Shaw on alto sax, Donald Edwards on drums and, of course, George Colligan on piano. Speaking of Kozlov, George calls him “one of the most underrated bassists in jazz” who “brings great enthusiasm to any musical situation.” Edwards, he says, “can play strong without overplaying” having “an open musical mind.” Jaleel Shaw “is gradually getting his due” since he is “now touring with the great Roy Haynes.”

The album opens with “Blue State” written about George’s adopted state of Oregon. The “blue” refers to political liberalism perceived of the state when, fact, only the city of Portland is liberal with the remainder of the state being mostly conservative.

Jaleel Shaw introduces the song on the alto sax as George lays the groundwork underneath. Boris Kozlov wastes no time in displaying why Colligan calls him “underrated.” He works so well with Donald Edwards and Colligan. They have played many times together and this shows immediately. Jaleel is the big surprise. He is a young player that Colligan pushes to the front, allowing us to see the maturity in this splendid musician. This is the sign of things to come both regarding the album and the future of jazz.

“Whadya Looking At?” is the expected query when staring too long at someone on a New York City subway. This is fun and unabashedly aggressive in its 5/4 time. I keep finding myself following Edwards’ drumming here.

Donald Edwards—like Colligan—is a teacher and performer. Edwards is the real deal—a man of clarity and integrity and all of that shows in his playing. “Virtuosity” is the word that comes to mind when describing Donald Edwards. Boris Kozlov is in near-perfect rapport with Edwards throughout the whole recording and it is highlighted here. Obviously, their time together in the Mingus Big Band pays off handsomely for Colligan’s quartet.

The third track is entitled “Missing,” a memorable ballad that Colligan wrote “in about 10 minutes.” With the song coming in at 8:45, it is clear that George wrote it Mozart-style—straight from the heart to the chart.

The four musicians turn in stellar performances. Had George not already come clean that this was basically a sight-reading recording, one would have been convinced that these four had practiced the material in clubs all over for weeks or even months. “Missing” has so much emotion and expression in it that, if indeed sight-read, then these four are all men of heart and honesty. Kozlov picks up the bow for this piece and it is heart-warming and astonishing. George’s piano is soulful and touching and is complemented by the matching soulfulness of Jaleel Shaw.

During a live performance, George once quipped that he prefers short titles to long ones but he had to name the following track “Miriam Edwards’ New York Accent” because that was the one way to describe it. Not quite as long as the Mingus title “The Shoes of the Fisherman’s Wife is Some Jive-Assed Slippers” but you get it. The song was written on his melodica in a London hotel room and was inspired by a British actress who claimed she could mimic 40 English dialects. According to George, the New York accent fell a bit short of the mark but the piece is full of swagger and swing as Jaleel and George trade off remarkably. There is an old-school feel to the composition but it is shot-full of innovative, non-traditional bits.

This in itself is a good description of the entire recording. These young musicians have learned from the past masters but they are not enslaved to them. In deed these young men have a profound respect or even reverence for Monk, Miles and Mingus but these compositions and performances have been informed and infused by so much more; influences of R&B, soul, funk and rock have added so much more color to the palettes of these artists. Jazz is indeed moving from black and white to color.

Kerry Politzer is a brilliant young jazz composer and pianist and the song “Pup Pup” was dedicated to her by her husband George Colligan. In her 2007 CD “You Took Me In,” Kerry had George sitting in on drums which he reprised in her 2010 album “Blue in Blue.” The song is written in 5/4 because Kerry’s Brazillian-influenced style utilizes 5/4 so much.

Donald’s prelude to the piece is very intriguing and opens nicely for Kozlov’s bass which is quickly followed by Colligan’s piano and the cool sax lines of Jaleel who again proves himself worthy of being named alongside any contemporary sax player you care to name. He displays a power and a control that is impressive.

“The Facts” is a bit of a hard-bop tune that just smokes. It is fiery in itself and the four musicians are absolutely ablaze with it. Colligan is at his most intense and most captivating here. The track requires multiple hearings in order to follow each member who individually contributes their hottest work. I don’t like comparing artists much but the performances turned in here sound like it could have Tyner-Coltrane-Garrison-Elvin Jones. Small wonder that the album is titled after this song.

Written as a study in the Lydian Dominant (or mixolydian) scale, “Lydian Domination” is not just an intellectual exercise or display piece. The slow groove is a monster to play but it sticks in your head like few things ever will.

Just a brief lesson in jazz theory, the Lydian Dominant scale raises the 4th and lowers the 7th. In the key of C, the scale would run C-D-E-F#-G-A-Bb-C. The scale is jazzy on its own merits but Colligan and Company work it brilliantly. It is Kozlov who introduces the scale and Jaleel Shaw works from there. The slow, heavy groove is intoxicating.

“Steppin’ Out” was a big radio hit for Joe Jackson in 1982-83. As George explains, “it wasn’t necessary to arrange it, since it was already pretty jazzy. We just put some swing on it.”

The track opens with Colligan’s chords followed by Edwards rolling in to be quickly joined by Boris and Jaleel. Swing is right! It is rendered as a straight instrumental piece and it works wonderfully. One begins to think that this is how it should have been all along. There is a particularly cool moment at about 2:53 when George intentionally drops time with the left hand. It catches the hearer’s ear and brings a quick smile.

The song and album end in a cool fade-out from bass and drum.

When I first got the CD, I looked at the track listing on the back cover. I was surprised to see four of the tracks as being from a set-list of a Colligan performance in Portland, OR in May of 2012. (The review of that performance is posted here) It is indeed a pleasure to hear these four pieces again albeit with different musicians.

The revelation is that the power and glory are in the compositions. The different musicians added their unique signatures but Colligan’s compositions are brilliant, challenging and suitable to equally talented musicians. His own intelligent and emotional talents create room for the best to play at their very own best.

With George Colligan at the helm, the horizon is not the limit.

In a blog about the February 29, 2012 performance of SoulMates at the Candlelight in Portland, I wrote: 

“…but what was the most unforgettable part of the night came early and the feeling stayed late. Jay "Bird" said 'This goes out to one of our very favorite people in the world and she's right here with us. This is for Chieko.' SoulMates then soared into the most beautiful, heart-tugging, and tear-inducing rendition of Sukiyaki. Of course, it is the English-speaking world that calls it that. In Japanese, the title is literally I Shall Walk Looking Up. The original was sung by Kyu Sakamoto entirely in Japanese but still was a huge hit in the U.S. in 1963, reaching #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 charts. It even reached #18 on the R&B charts.

SoulMates, however, gave the most emotional of instrumental treatments of the song. This was the song of the night. This was the song that stuck in everyone's mind. People were absolutely "oohing and aahing" at the end. One woman called it "the most beautiful thing I ever heard." Another said, "I have heard it sung and I have sung it myself many times but I never heard anything like this!" As the melody faded away, "Bird" said once again, "That was for Chieko." '

When Jay “Bird” Koder plays this song, something seems to come over him. His face changes and he seems to drift, not aimlessly, but with the sense of being carried on a current. But the song is not taking him; he is taking the song.

He plays the song at half-tempo and—instead of the original sounds of orchestra and bamboo sticks—SoulMates bring the soulful sounds of the great trio of keyboard, drums and guitar. Jarrod Lawson on keys and Reinhardt Melz on drums create the perfect (yes, I said “perfect”) tapestry of heart-felt dedication, warmth and grace for the “Bird’s” guitar.

His guitar does not cry or moan. It does not wail. It is a sigh—a sigh of all being right with the world. In the midst of troubles and storms, all is well. Amidst confusion and even sadness, there is still something beautiful in the world and in life. For me, in the middle of the worst situations…my beautiful Chieko is there.

When Jay “Bird” Koder plays Sukiyaki, he is playing it for her but he plays with understanding—understanding what she means to me. It is as if he is playing what I cannot. And the effect touches everyone in the place.

During a performance of the song for Chieko’s birthday, one man admitted to getting teary-eyed when he heard the song. Another man who looked like a veteran from the Battle of Jutland sat in the back and even his weathered face and craggy smile turned into springtime as he listened to “Bird's” playing.

Sakamoto’s song is remarkable on its own but under the “Bird’s” lovely treatment, it turns into a serenade, a sonnet. The beauty of Chieko is mirrored in SoulMates’ Sukiyaki.

The last time we heard it was when we had just discovered that we were having to move away. There would be only a few chances left to hear SoulMates before we were gone. On this evening, when we told “Bird”, Jarrod and Reinhardt what was happening, they played Sukiyaki for Chieko.

It was a fitting song on this emotional evening. The performance was sterling and may have very well been Bird's finest version of this song. As “Bird” strolled into the audience, he played in front of Chieko and they bowed to each other in a meaningful and touching way.  It would be the last time we got to see them perform... for a while.

I concluded the blog of February 29 with these words: “If you ever saw sweet Chieko, you would understand why he said what he did at the beginning and why he reminded us at the end that this song was for Chieko. If you ever saw Chieko, you would think that it was indeed fitting that such a beautiful song should be played for her. If you ever saw Chieko, you would know why she is everyone's favorite.”

If you ever saw Chieko, you would understand why I can “walk looking up.”

There are times when I hear recordings that I know will stay with me for the rest of my life. One such album was my pleasure to review in March of 2013. It was by Hristo Vitchev Quartet and was entitled “Familiar Fields.”

The CD is loaded with music that goes from brilliance to brilliance and it is an album that leaves the listener changed forever. Music can do that and we are fortunate indeed when we feel it as it is happening. For me, I knew it from the opening notes of this album.

“Willing to Live” is the final track of that splendid album. I’m sure that in time I will revisit all of the songs from “Familiar Fields.” At the moment, however, I have this song in repeat mode on my player and it bears some small discussion.

The song begins with Weber Iago’s lovely and delicate piano prelude. It sounds almost like a lullaby and it is fittingly so. Hristo tells in the liner notes that the piece was written in dedication to his grandmother Donka Krasteva “for her never endless desire to keep fighting and living.” But it is not the sound and movement of struggle that we hear; it is the joyful fulfillment and attachment of life lived well and lovingly.

The sweet chord progressions of the piano give way to Hristo’s intricate guitar work as Mike Shannon turns in beautiful brushwork on the drums. Dan Robbins’ bass is soulful and sounds like the low drive of a strong heart.

Weber’s piano returns in runs and is followed by Hristo’s own guitar runs. This is the sound of moving forward against all odds and obstacles—not aggressively but assuredly. This moves to a rocking chair imagery that is heart-warming without being maudlin. Instead, one gets the feeling of deep memory and gratitude.

As my wife and I listen to the piece again and again, we find ourselves wishing for this same strength as we move forward in our lives. We think of my wife’s dear mother who was so willing to live for her children even after the long-ago loss of her beloved husband. She was willing to live through every disappointment and heartache right up until her energy was spent. She left us willing to live for her legacy and memory and love. We do not wish to fail her.

And so ends the song, with fading cymbal and piano… the heartbeat bass fading out last. There is nothing tragic or anguished in “Willing to Live.” Rather, it is an anthem-lullaby of gently carrying on.

For love's sake, we all remain "Willing to Live."


Get "Familiar Fields" here: http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/hristovitchevquartet

“What’s Next?” is the second album in “Randy Klein’s Two Duos” series.  The first in the series was 2010’s “Sunday Morning” featuring famed trombonist Chris Washburne and tenor sax player Oleg Kireyev.

The second volume—in what one hopes will become a vast series—brings guitarist Alek Skolnick (of the jazz band Alex Skolnick Trio and thrash metal band Testament) and Boris Kozlov, the two-time Grammy-winning bassist with the Mingus Big Band.

This riveting CD begins with the track entitled “Exalted Kingdom” in an almost-Vince Guaraldi feel. The joyous jump of the united piano and guitar is punctuated by Skolnick’s treatment of the melody until Klein’s piano returns to smooth things out. Klein describes this as a song that has been too long sitting on the piano but, for the listener, it has been worth the wait.

This recording is musical alchemy from the beginning to the very end.

The piece “What’s Next?” is described in Klein’s liner notes as challenging the players to “hear time and experience the space.” Kozlov scores big on this track as he moves from punch to glide, from unison to independence. Klein’s piano is brilliant as he acts as the axis around whom Kozlov rotates.

“Casa China” has the feeling “that it should never end,” according to Klein and I could not agree more. Klein and Skolnick start out in a virtuosic frenzy that drops into sweet melody. The guitar and piano are not so much partners as they are twin strands of a jazz double-helix.

“Dear Charles Mingus” is a gorgeous duo of piano and bass. It is whimsical. It is sweet. It is quite nearly the perfect composition for piano and bass and it is the right musicians playing it.

Alek Skolnick returns for “No” and he provides such a “Wes Montgomery jazz” sound that it is easy to forget that he is a master thrash metal guitarist. The song is almost a lullaby in the simplicity and elegance displayed by Klein and Skolnick. Kozlov and Klein continue the lovely simplicity in “Lark” which is as lyrical as the title suggests. Almost a nocturne in its emotion and movement, “Lark” highlights Klein’s exquisite piano work and Kozlov is in perfect step with him.

“Where’s My Glasses?” is perfectly understandable to anyone who is forced to undertake the daily search. The piece moves logically in a near-search pattern—turning frantic—until the inevitable moment of “Oh, there they are.” The search is undertaken by Klein and Skolnick and, musically, they certainly discover what they were looking to find.

The minuet “Tea for Three” takes the hearer away in its waltzing ¾ meter. “Lilts” is the word Randy Klein uses to describe it. Indeed, it does that. It is charming and dreamy and Kozlov’s bass lines add to the imagery magnificently.

Originally a film score for a documentary film about the author Richard Wright, “Pere La Chaise” is a haunting melody that Klein has long-wanted to use in short form. Klein and Skolnick deliver impressions of questing-and-not-finding. The piece is almost heart-breaking in its composition and performance.

“Inner Voice” follows and is a meditative work full of memory and longing. It is succeeded by the equally-moving “In the Twilight Hours” with Kozlov in the preceding piece and Skolnick in the second. In fact, with “Pere La Chaise”, they form almost a suite.

However, “In the Twilight Hours” may be Klein at his most emotionally evocative with Skolnick partnering brilliantly. It has great moments of delicacy and tenderness.

“Return to Splendor” is a fine and fitting end to such an intriguing and welcome album. The tug between piano and bass is a hallmark of all the duos found on this recording.

The running together and running away between the musicians is always tight and thrilling in the album. There is no weak moment and while the CD may have answered the question “What’s Next?” regarding the first album in the series, it certainly begs the question for the succeeding ones. It is a question worth pondering and worth anticipating.


"What's Next?" is manufactured and distributed under Randy's own Jazzheads label. Downloads are available here:
http://www.jazzheads.com/store.php?crn=253&rn=573&action=show_detail.