Ahmad
Jamal: Poinciana (Chess BMCA 004)
Found this one amidst a budget-priced stash...and now,
it’s become one of my all-time favourites, even though
I (almost) didn’t buy it at the time... Once known
only as “Fritz Jones” - do you wonder he made
the change? - Ahmad Jamal is one of the great “lost”
influences upon modern jazz, despite scoring some freak
hits during the fifties. But still...this was the man
of whom Miles Davis once said:
“I live until he makes another record.”
No small praise, eh? And this from someone not lightly
given to acclaim... Now, the key thing about Ahmad Jamal
- the thing that still rings like a bell in his work -
is the nigh-on unique space he accords his rhythm section...something
that Miles evidently learnt from, and that has thus subsequently
influenced much of the best music that has followed. And,
this is even more startling when you realize that he is
a pianist...
But...describing his piano style is, to put it bluntly,
bloody difficult. Sure, he’s clearly indebted to
the Earl Hines/Teddy Wilson minimalist model...you know,
the one that keeps well out of the way of the rhythm section.
But his “voice” is even more sparse than theirs,
whilst at the same time being so clearly post-bop that
it is inimitable. Think uncannily lean midrange/treble
rhythm/lead phrasing, that seems perfectly balanced between
“easy listening” - horrible phrase - and minimalism,
and you’ll begin to get the picture...
And, arguably, this live set is his best, as the trio
here is purely uncanny in their near-telepathic interplay...at
times verging on some kind of accessible “avant gardism”
- doncha hate those words? - that is nigh-on unique. Because...the
acoustic bass & drums are stunningly adept at keeping
out of each others’ way - resulting in a trio approach
where all three instruments function effortlessly on the
rhythm/lead level - unlike any other piano trio I’ve
ever heard.
Some grooves lock in...poised in some weirdly accessible
(I keep falling back on that weasel-word) yet strange
zone that so few bands can attain. Others turn & re-turn,
navigating around obstacles only these three can see...
But...I’ve just realized that I’ve totally
failed to accentuate the thing that really elevates this
stuff. Which is its unrelenting physicality. Three players,
working together like some tripatate body/brain...and
yet, still goddamn pretty. This is one that every band
- of whatever stripe - genuinely ought to hear. Just to
teach them what genuinely human rhythmic/melodic interplay
- in real time - is capable of.
just listen...
John Henry Calvinist
