Reviews - Cont
just happens to work well because project shouldn’t work so well, but of the chemistry between the two theory only goes so far. Bella Nainteresting projects. The man, after protagonists, the talents of the mu- poli proves that point. all, put out the reeds-heavy Saxop- sicians involved, and a collection hone Mosaic (Criss Cross, 1993), of arrangements (provided by Jeff ambitious Blue Suite (Criss Cross, Lederer) that cater to all parties so 2000), one-of-a-kind High Noon: well. The Jazz Soul Of Frankie Laine Bella Napoli is really two albums (Reservoir/City Hall, 2009) and in one, as five numbers are inorgan-meets-bari Smul’s Paradise strumentals and six tracks featu(Capri, 2012), so it should come as re vocals. Chianese first turns up no shock that he was interested in on “Anema e Core,” which begins trying something new with Chia- with a marked sense of longing nese. but takes on a lighter feeling with Chianese made his first on-record splash as a vocalist with Hits (Madacy 2 Label Group, 2001), but that was hardly his first stab at singing. He began to explore musical theater in his youth and he entered the ranks of the professionals when he was hired as a chorus member in a touring company of Gilbert and Sullivan’s H.M.S. Pinafore in the early ‘50s. He even logged time in the folk trenches in the ‘60s, singing and playing his guitar and serving as MC at Gerde’s Folk City. Unfortunately, singing went on the back burner for a bit when his acting career took off, but it became a primary pursuit again in later years. Hits and Ungrateful Heart (Grandstand Entertainment, 2003) introduced his vocal talents to a wider audience, and now, ten years after his last record, the octogenarian returns with this tasty Italian dish. While many partners-from-different-worlds projects are built on the idea of compromise and a meet-in-the-middle mindset, this one isn’t. The baritone saxophonist and singer of Neapolitan songs don’t give up their respective core performance principles and this project is all the better for it; Chianese charms simply by doing his thing and Smulyan alternately smokes and seduces as usual. This odd-on-the-surface partnership 90 All About Jazz Magazine
the arrival of a bossa nova groove. From there he moves on to music that’s Cuban-infused and tropically enhanced (“Marechiare”), wistfully romantic (“O Sole Mio”) and gently desirous (“A Vucchella”). He even bares his tortured soul in the name of love (“Dicitencello Vuie”). Chianese’s final stand—an a capella “Santa Lucia Lontana”—comes with a spoken introduction but it doesn’t need one; it goes straight to the heart like all the rest of the songs he sings here. The instrumentals are no less pleasing, as deep-seated beauty merges with the simple-and-solid (“Fenestra Che Lucive”), gaiety and joy take hold (“O Saracino”), and old world sounds are opened up for the taking (“Peque”). As the program unfolds, serious notions are mixed with more playful ideals (“Tre Veglia e Sonno”), creating a well-rounded picture of where this music can go in the right hands. Gary Versace’s breath-of-Italian-air accordion and Joseph Brent’s calm-as-can-be mandolin tremolos add a stamp of sonic authenticity to this project while the rhythm team of drummer Matt Wilson and bassist Martin Wind is grounded and creative all at once. Smulyan, perhaps the best at bring out the beefy and the tender in the baritone saxophone, is never short of excellent here. In theory, this
Erik Friedlander Claws & Wings
Label: Skipstone Records By TROY COLLINS
How does one deal with the loss of a loved one? For many artists, expressing remorse through their work is a normal, sometimes necessary, part of the grieving process. Creative improvising musicians, like renowned cellist Erik Friedlander, are no exception. Lynn Shapiro, Friedlander’s wife of 22 years (and an award winning choreographer and writer in her own right), died in November 2011 after a long bout with breast cancer. Just days after her passing Friedlander tore a ligament in his thumb during a biking accident, effectively sidelining him for months. Less than a year later however, Friedlander returned to composing with Claws & Wings, an album-length elegy to his late wife. The session is unique in Friedlander’s discography, not only for its highly personal subject matter, but because of its atypical electro-acoustic instrumentation and lineup. Most of Friedlander’s previous ensemble recordings have been acoustically-based, band-oriented documents; from Chimera and Topaz to the Broken Arm Trio and Bonebridge, electronics have nor-