Guitarist Abercrombie’s alliance with violinist Mark Feldman has proven to be an enduringly creative musical association: they have been playing and recording together for more than a decade now, starting with the “Open Land” sextet of 1998, and following with the quartet albums “Cat’n’Mouse”, “Class Trio “ and “The Third Quartet”. With “Wait Till You See Her” (named for the old Rogers & Hart show tune that Abercrombie plays so tenderly), the line-up of the quartet is adjusted to admit the excellent young bassist Thomas Morgan, whose adroit playing reveals a LaFaro-esque invention. As ever, the core team of Abercrombie, Feldman, and drummer Joey Baron play subtle, elegant and profound jazz.
Wait Till You See Her
John Abercrombie Quartet
- 1Sad Song
07:13 - 2Line-Up
07:16 - 3Wait Till You See Her
05:40 - 4Trio
05:10 - 5I've Overlooked Before
07:28 - 6Anniversary Waltz
09:25 - 7Out Of Towner
06:11 - 8Chic Of Araby
08:22
Stereoplay, Jazz-CD des Monats
Stereo, Audiophiles Highlight des Monats
ECM is celebrating its 40th year with a season of banner releases, some starrier but none more beautiful than this chamber-jazz marvel from long-serving guitarist John Abercrombie. You can judge this book by its cover: The glowing image of the Brooklyn Bridge at night matches the limpid tone of Abercrombie’s guitar and the way the band plays quietly yet intensely – the sound of an urban nocturne.
Bradley Bambarger, The Star-Ledger
Abercrombie’s latest is a set of chamber-like, often impressionistic gems, made all the more incandescent by players committed to high degrees of interaction and musical exploration.
Philip Booth, Jazziz
Scofield recently claimed that Abercrombie is playing better than ever, and this renewed partnership with violinist Mark Feldman and drummer Joey Baron makes pretty good supporting evidence. All the material except for the Rodgers and Hart title track is Abercrombie’s, and the set is a free-flowing, time-shifting, four-way conversation more than a succession of tunes and solos.
John Fordham, The Guardian
Während andere Jazzmusiker mit den unterschiedlichsten Besetzungen, Stilen und äußeren Einflüssen experimentieren, bleibt John Abercrombie seiner Spielweise treu. Seit zehn Jahren steht das Quartett mit Mark Feldman an der Violine und Joey Baron im Zentrum seiner Arbeit. Und das zahlt sich aus: In unfehlbarem Verständnis untereinander kultiviert das Quartett ein ungeheuer dichtes kammermusikalisches Ensemblespiel und freie Improvisationen, die in all ihrer Vertracktheit leicht und eingängig wirken.
Sven Sorgenfrey, Financial Times
Schon der Opener „Sad song“ weist alle Parameter der Stimmung des Albums auf. Abercrombie verzaubert durch seine Legatolinien und ausdifferenzierten Vibratoklänge. Mark Felmans Violine legt sich geschmeidig in die Dichte des Klangs, der von Thomas Morgan, Bass, und Joey Baron, Drums, wie ein gemeinsam gewebter Teppich unterlegt wird. Wer oberflächliche Action erwartet, ist hier falsch, es gilt hinter die Fassade zu schauen. Wer sich darauf einlässt, erlebt ein Abenteuer, das – aus der Sicht des Jazz – romantischer kaum sein könnte.
Jannek Roland Meyer, Jazzpodium
Er ist, seit seinen Anfängen im eher extrovertierten Jazz-Rock der siebziger Jahre… zunehmend zu einer Art Paradox geworden: zum Gravitationszentrum einer sehr persönlichen Art von Kammermusik, einem Medium und Mittelpunkt eines eigenen musikalischen Kosmos; und gleichzeitig hat er sich immer weiter zurückgenommen, ja fast zum Verschwinden gebracht. Die Faszination der Musik dieses stillen Giganten der Gitarre hängt zu einem guten Teil mit dieser ihrer Diskretion zusammen. Sie drängt sich nicht auf, sie will entdeckt sein. … Eine Musik wie die Heimkehr an einen fremden, einen fast vergessenen Ort. Zu mir selbst.
Peter Rüedi, Weltwoche
Wait Till You See Her ist Abercrombies atmosphärisch dichteste, kompositorisch exklusivste und spielerisch gewagteste Platte seit Jahren. … Bestand Abercrombies aktuelle Gruppe schon von Anbeginn aus herausragenden Solisten, hat sie jetzt auch ihren ultimativen Bandsound gefunden. Es kommt kaum mehr auf die einzelne Stimme an. … Nicht zuletzt lebt die Formenvielfalt des Albums von den unterschiedlichen Einflüssen, die Feldman, Baron und Abercrombie selbst zusammentragen.
Wolf Kampmann, Jazzthing
John Abercrombie’s Quartet is both a subtly swinging jazz group and an adventurous one, with a range encompassing music from standards to group improvising of chamber music sensibility. While consciously linked, through the pieces that John writes for it, to the jazz tradition, the quartet often seems to be on the brink of leaving it behind. Abercrombie has described himself both as “an Ornette Coleman styled free player” and a player keen to extend the harmonic language of the jazz guitar. As a forward-thinking traditionalist he’s been hailed as “the most important living jazz guitarist” (All About Jazz), and earned the respect and approval of his peers. Jim Hall, one of Abercrombie’s formative influences has said, “John is unique and allows himself to grow and change constantly...I love his playing because it constantly surprises me.” His contemporary John Scofield says, “Anybody who’s got ears can hear the beautiful integrity of his improvisations, and how incredibly well he plays the electric guitar. Right now he’s playing better than he ever has.” (DownBeat interview).
Recorded in New York’s Avatar Studios in December 2008, with Manfred Eicher producing, “Wait Till You See Her” features new Abercrombie pieces which provide frames for thoughtful group interaction, plus the tender title track (a Rodgers and Hart tune originally penned for the 1942 musical, “By Jupiter”).
The quartet has been the primary focus of Abercrombie’s work for a decade now, making it the longest-lasting of the guitarist’s ‘regular’ bands. “Wait Till You See Her” follows “Cat ’n’ Mouse” (2000), “Class Trip” (2003) and “The Third Quartet” (2006). The roots of the project, however, are in “Open Land”, the 1998 project that brought Abercrombie and Mark Feldman together. “Having Feldman is like having a string section behind you sometimes,” Abercrombie told journalist Paul Olson. “He’ll jump in and start playing behind me on tunes, playing double-stops or making little quotes, and it’s like having a little orchestra. It inspires me to play in particular ways... I was looking for a band that had a wide dynamic range, that would delve into freer areas of improvisation... When we do play freely and make things go up or off into those zones, it sounds more like chamber music to me. With the violin and guitar and acoustic bass it becomes almost like 20th century classical music, or something you can’t even put your finger on.”
In the improvised sections of the present recording, the interplay between old hands Abercrombie, Feldman and Baron is differently shaded and given impetus through the assured input of remarkable young bass player, Thomas Morgan (28), whose resume already includes work with Steve Coleman, Paul Motian, Masubumi Kikuchi, and whose agility and deep, rooted musicality is exceptional. “Wait Till You See Her” is Morgan’s ECM debut.
Recorded in New York’s Avatar Studios in December 2008, with Manfred Eicher producing, “Wait Till You See Her” features new Abercrombie pieces which provide frames for thoughtful group interaction, plus the tender title track (a Rodgers and Hart tune originally penned for the 1942 musical, “By Jupiter”).
The quartet has been the primary focus of Abercrombie’s work for a decade now, making it the longest-lasting of the guitarist’s ‘regular’ bands. “Wait Till You See Her” follows “Cat ’n’ Mouse” (2000), “Class Trip” (2003) and “The Third Quartet” (2006). The roots of the project, however, are in “Open Land”, the 1998 project that brought Abercrombie and Mark Feldman together. “Having Feldman is like having a string section behind you sometimes,” Abercrombie told journalist Paul Olson. “He’ll jump in and start playing behind me on tunes, playing double-stops or making little quotes, and it’s like having a little orchestra. It inspires me to play in particular ways... I was looking for a band that had a wide dynamic range, that would delve into freer areas of improvisation... When we do play freely and make things go up or off into those zones, it sounds more like chamber music to me. With the violin and guitar and acoustic bass it becomes almost like 20th century classical music, or something you can’t even put your finger on.”
In the improvised sections of the present recording, the interplay between old hands Abercrombie, Feldman and Baron is differently shaded and given impetus through the assured input of remarkable young bass player, Thomas Morgan (28), whose resume already includes work with Steve Coleman, Paul Motian, Masubumi Kikuchi, and whose agility and deep, rooted musicality is exceptional. “Wait Till You See Her” is Morgan’s ECM debut.
