Just
Us
The Hal Galper Trio with special guest Jerry Bergonzi. ENJA Records ENJ80382
W/ Steve Ellington Drm, Pat O'Leary Bs.
1. Just Us,
2. Unforgettable,
3. Moonglazed,
4. Stablemates,
5. Bye Bye Blackbird,
6. Lover Man,
7. I‘ll Never Be the Same.
Down Beat
Magazine
Owen Cordle
A cat works for years as a sideman, so you get used to saying things like (quotes) Pianist Hal Galper brought a fine casual lyricism mixed with various angles of percussiveness to these performances (end quote), or, (quote) Hal Galper! Yeah, man! A jumpin rhapsodist! (end quote). But when he gets out on his own, you begin to notice things differently: the old characteristsics remain true but in deeper, more interesting ways, and the new things are true suprises. Thus it is with this album, in which the quartet makes these tunes with a loose, accented , sometimes skittish, free-within-the-form approach.
At the piano, Galper cooks in a
laid back style. Chords reminiscent of Bill Evans devolve into
frisky, circling runs and then fragmented, strutting lines. He
locks in with the bass and the drums-clipped left, trinkle-tinkle
right- and the trio becomes something out of early Ahmad Jamal
until Galper starts pulling against the grain. O‘Leary walks
the bass with a big tubby sound. Ellington is a symphony of
accents. (Bombs away!) Bergonzi‘s tough and tender, New York
style tenor is a companionable spirit, a predominantly blunt voice
dented by romance.
The groups performance of Unforgettable, taken faster than usual,
makes room for the usual sentiments, but obliquely. Blackbird,
another familiar melody, is further abstracted: a lazy assemblage
in which everyone keeps playing away from the customary sign
posts. Lover man burns, another non-traditional approach.
I‘ll Never Be The Same, the title a philosophical statement
for this group perhaps, is in a down groove, with the tenor in a
Dexter Gordon bag.
Like a lot of mature jazz these days, these performances initially
give a jaded impression (quote) Weve been in some big towns and
weve seen some big talk (end quote). But when the group and the
soloists get rolling, they‘re all willing to open the door
and convey a little romance (including new graces learned en
route) one more time.
Galper@worldnet.att.net
Galper@worldnet.att.net