ESPERANZA SPALDING – “Junjo”
Ayva Music, 2006

Debut of a really interesting young bassist, with two excellent partners in Francisco Mela (drums) and Aruan Ortiz (piano). Spalding’s secret weapon is her light, sweet voice, and she scats along on most of the tracks. Her bass playing is elastic and twisty (she rarely chooses the obvious note), and the material is great: rich yet low-key modernist tunes that are accessible but of unusual shapes. Recommended!

Fo’s Picks: 1, 2, 4, but it’s all good

1. 7:56 – haunting voice/piano melody in a deep-toned little groove; drums tumble like an acrobat (the only recording of this song I’ve ever liked)
2. 5:06 – cute tune with happy, infectious scatting and terrific trio interplay
3. 5:51 – deep-hued Wayne Shorter tune, nice piano/bass chat, no vox
4. 7:51 – voc/piano melody, great trio work, turns hypnotic at the drum solo
5. 3:38 – minimalist vocal/piano duet, a happy Latin melody
6. 5:13 – uptempo Latin scurry with slow breaks, playful piano & vox
7. 4:55 – bass/voc solo, sung in Spanish, like a daydream or a lullaby
8. 6:59 – sneaky tune with some dramatic accents, lots of space in the solos
9. 1:32 – snippet of an improvised scat vocal/drum duet, fades in/out

[ Fo ] 27-Apr-07