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Cerra , copyright protected; all rights reserved.
“With a decade [now, more two decades] of playing together under their belts, Larry Goldings, Peter Bernstein
and Bill Stewart must form one of the most long-lived organ trios in Jazz
history.
Each member has amassed an
imposing individual resume, during this period, yet their collective work has
signified something more – a reaffirmation, not of the organ trio as a unit
capable of satisfying a temporary fashion for things, but as an instrumentation
as perfectly balanced in its way as the threesomes of piano, bass and drums or,
in another realm, the string quartet.”
- Bob Blumenthal , 1999
The music and the
musicians on Hammond B-3 organist Larry Goldings’ Caminhos Cruzados [loosely
translated from the Portuguese as “crossings paths”] have always been among
my favorites.
Recorded in 1993,
the compact disc seemed to come out of nowhere because its Brazilian bossa nova
tunes hadn’t been in vogue for many years.
Here’s Larry
description of how the recording came about.
“A few years ago,
I made an interesting discovery about my early childhood. I had gone home to Massachusetts to visit my parents and brought with me a
recording of the Brazilian singer João Gilberto. I had recently been introduced
to his music by Jon Hendricks, with whom I was working, and instantly became
somewhat of a fanatic.
At some point that
weekend, I decided to play the CD for my mother, who isn't normally interested
in the music I listen to, but I had an instinctual feeling that she would like
it. After his opening guitar introduction, João started singing, and almost
immediately my mother's face lit up and she said, ‘Oh, I remember this !’ I was
surprised by her reaction and asked, ‘You mean you used to own this record?’
‘Yes,’ she replied, ‘I used to play it for you when you were a baby. It would
always calm you down.’
This startling
piece of information was quite a revelation to me. Could this, I thought, explain
why I am so moved by João Gilbert's voice? Could it be, that upon listening to
him now I experience the same feelings of innocence and security that I felt as
an infant, 25 years ago?
Well, Sigmund
Freud might have been better equipped to answer these questions, but all I know
is that the music of Brazil is very close to my heart, and it was a
pleasure to prepare and record this CD. It was also a special challenge
because the Hammond organ is not often heard in Brazilian music, although
interestingly one of the early pioneers of the bossa nova was in fact an organist
named Walter Wanderley.
On this CD, the
focus is not so much on the organ itself, but on the jazz organ trio - that is,
organ, guitar and drums. The other members comprising the trio are Peter
Bernstein and Bill Stewart, who are two of the most creative musicians playing
today and have recorded with me on two other occasions. The group is augmented
by the exceptional Brazilian percussionist Guilherme Franco, who, during the
making of this CD had many insightful comments and suggestions that helped
shape the music. Finally, listeners will be enchanted by the thoughtful playing
of Joshua Redman.
While researching
the material for this CD, I realized that there are many beautiful songs that
have not been given the recognition they deserve. I discovered four such song
among my João Gilberto records: So Danco Samba, Ho-ha-la-la, Avarandado, and the title track, Caminhos Cruzados. The latter, written
by the prolific Antonio Carlos Jobim is perhaps my favorite on the CD. The
composition is one of Jobim's most lyrical and is harmonically lush and
unpredictable. Listen to Peter Bernstein's sublime statement of the melody, and
the percussion accompaniment of Guilherme Franco, who, like Peter, is a master
of taste. Among the other tracks are the obscure Menina-Moca. whose harmonic movement has a particularly
"classical" sound, and the familiar Once I Loved, which is treated in
a much slower, moodier manner than usual.
There are three
selections that are not Brazilian songs at all, but naturally lend themselves
to the bossa nova feeling. They are: Where
or When, Una Mas, and Serenata, on which the band could not
resist the urge to swing the solos. One of the two sambas on the CD, Manine, is my own composition. Featured
here is the exciting interplay between Guilherme (on the cuica) and Bill
Stewart. Words is also my
composition, and was inspired by a Chopin mazurka. It is a perfect vehicle for
Joshua Redman, who displays his ability to interpret a ballad with finesse and
a hint of the blues.
I must admit that
I have never visited Brazil . I feel, however, as if I have, because as
I recently discovered, the first musical sounds I ever heard were those of Brazil . Although I doubt that I was actually
"listening" to my mother's João Gilberto record, (as I was only 1 or
2 years old), his voice, and the harmonies and rhythms of his guitar, were
seeping into my subconscious, planting the seeds that would later become my
love of music.
- written by Larry
Goldings”
To give you some
idea of the wonderful music on offer on Caminhos Cruzados, the editorial
staff at JazzProfiles in conjunction with the crackerjack graphics team
at CerraJazz and the production facilities of StudioCerra have developed the
following video and audio tracks for you to sample.
We hope that you
will enjoy this in-depth presentation of classic Brazilian bossa nova by some
of today’s most accomplished Jazz musicians.