BILL FRISELL: Big Sur
OKeh, 2013

CHAMBER JAZZ – This series of sketches, commissioned for the 2012 Monterey Jazz Festival and inspired by the central California coastline, mixes in large doses of Americana, classical (and sometimes even rock) with a very folksy core sound. The string-heavy quintet includes Frisell’s guitar along with violin, viola, cello and drums. It shines with a mix of melancholy, serenity and dark vibrancy.

Fo’s Picks: 1, 2, 4, 8, 10, 12, 17, 18, 19

1. 3:46 – sparkling, gently rocking tune… friendly feel of home
2. 4:22 – relaxed song (sounds like it should have lyrics), lopes along casually
3. 0:53 – jaunty rockish interlude
4. 3:17 – slow mix of a heavy, ponderous theme and lighthearted spirit
5. 2:44 – happy surf-rock ditty… if the Ventures were a string quartet…
6. 1:32 – too-short road tune, guitar lopes along over spinning strings
7. 5:31 – gentle chamber music becomes a march, turns strange & edgy
8. 3:18 – steady stroll, but there’s lots of fragility in the string melody
9. 1:39 – slow droning interlude, something half-seen in the mist
10. 4:51 – sinuous and mysterious, rolls forward toward the unknown
11. 4:05 – alternates catchy little theme with a sweeping vista
12. 4:40 – upbeat bounce, lightly swooping strings dance around each other
13. 1:39 – very relaxed with a Neil Young folk-rock touch
14. 3:05 – spare chamber-jazz, all pained harmony and odd angles
15. 2:01 – upbeat marching tune: moves forward in a straight line
16. 4:11 – strange, relaxed slump; a drunken feel with weird harmony
17. 4:10 – friendly melody in a rotating series of shifting tempos/rhythms
18. 4:14 – nostalgic country ballad: really interesting string arrangement here
19. 4:36 – careful but beautiful: guitar paces the periphery, strings drift within

[ Fo ] - 14 July 2013