Two

Jazz | Sep 2015

Reviews

Be Sharp
Reviewed 2015-09-14
ECLECTIC MULTI-GENRE INSTRUMENTAL

Here are live concert recordings from tours supporting Corea and Fleck’s 2007 studio album, The Enchantment. We get a fascinating mashup of eclectic styles and influences featuring acoustic piano & banjo only. Most tunes are by Corea or Fleck, and most appeared on Enchantment. Be prepared: almost all tracks end with 20+ sec of applause.

All instrumental. No FCC issues.

Disc 1
1 Welcoming applause; spoken comments (0:52)
2 * Slow intro then mid-fast. Chick & Béla trade showy flourishes & riffs. By midway, it’s quite lively with a Spanish flavor. (music ends at ~8:00, track 8:25)
3 Slow to fast. A bit avant-guard: hard to categorize / describe. At times melodic; other times noisy. Interesting solos plus bangs, pops, etc. (music to 10:06; track 10:26)
4 Spoken comments (1:00)
5 * Mid-fast. Tender intro, then lively. First half is mainly banjo lead, piano accomp; second half is other way. At intersection of jazz, Classical & folk. (music to 8:03; track 8:25)
6 Spoken comments (1:37)
7 *** Mid-tempo. Fun, jazzy feel. Much development with varying sections. Banjo serves role of guitar incl good blues licks. (music to 9:00; track 9:19)
8 * Mid-tempo. Classical & folk elements woven into a tour-de-force banjo solo that segues right into #9 with no applause on this track. (3:43)
9 ** Mid-tempo. Opens to applause for Béla’s solo (#8); Chick joins for an exuberant, joyous folk-dance duet. Great interaction & solo flourishes. (music to 4:55; track 5:30)


Disc 2
1 Varying tempo. Applause at start. Oft-recorded Brazilian song & jazz standard. Quite modern at times, dense & complex, with showy passages. (music to 8:46; track 9:01)
2 * Slow, pastoral, impressionist. Chick solos for 2+ min. A jazz piece with mixed influences. Piano is much the more dominant instrument. (music to 9:29; track 9:46)
3 Spoken comments (0:16)
4 *** VERY fast. Swing-era tune (Benny, Duke, Glenn Miller) that crossed into Blue Grass (Bill Monroe). Here Béla picks in hyper-Scruggs style, while Chick plays old-time saloon piano. It’s great fun! (music to 3:12; track 3:38)
5 Spoken comments (1:01)
6 * Mid-tempo; quite gentle. A modern (20C) Classical composition (a lullaby) played mostly on piano. (music to 3:09; track 3:35)
7 ** Mid-slow to fast. From a song suite patterned after Bartok that Corea rec’d in 1984; also with Gary Burton on Duet. Quite varied: playful at times, sometimes melodic; in places harsh. Piano leads first half, banjo the second. (music to 14:20; track 14:49)
8 Spoken comments (2:22)
9 *** Very fast. Old-time barroom jazz. Highly technical. Brilliant syncopated interaction. Very fun. (music to 5:47; 6:34)
10 ** Mid-tempo. Lovely piece, led mostly by banjo, combines folk, country & jazz elements. (music to 10:13; track 10:30)
11 * Mid-tempo. Light but lively with hints of Latin dances. (music to 3:00; track 3:51)

Recent airplay

Sunset Road
Joban Dna Nopia
Sunset Road

Charting

2015-09-18 — 2015-11-20 Jazz
Week EndingAirplays
Nov 22 3
Nov 15 3
Nov 8 3
Nov 1 2
Oct 25 4
Oct 18 2
Oct 11 3
Oct 4 6

Track listing

1. Spoken Comments
2. Señorita
3. Managerie
4. Spoken Comments
5. Waltse For Abby
6. Spoken Comments
7. Joban Dna Nopia
8. The Climb
9. Mountain
10. Brazil
11. The Enchantment
12. Spoken Comments
13. Bugle Call Rag
14. Spoken Comments
15. Prelude En Berceuse (From Au Gré Des Ondes)
16. Children's Song No. 6
17. Spoken Comments
18. Spectacle
19. Sunset Road
20. Armando's Rhumba