Tony's Blues Review

Tony's Blues
Barry Wallenstein (Cadence Jazz Records)

Barry Wallenstein's recordings of jazz poetry surpass the idiom's all too typical offerings, e.g., the mediocre poet droning angst while his accompanists overpower him, or the resonant baritone booming cliches of urban crisis whose urgent accents stamp away from the pulse intended to power the recitation. Wallenstein's first-rate poetry conveys the hipster's quick intelligence. His upper-range tenor infuses his poems with a jazz vocalist's phrasing and an everyman's approachability.

Tony's Blues matches the high standard Wallenstein established in his previous recordings with a set whose emotional range encompasses wit, whimsy, despair, thoughtful reflection and outrageous exuberance. About half of its twenty-four poems appeared in Wallenstein's excellent poetry collection A Measure of Conduct, which includes a poem sequence about Tony, the urban hipster whose solitary pursuit of personal truths frames the recording. A quintet with an unconventional front line of trumpet and french horn enhances the poems with empathic textures that combine the fluidity of bop and the polyphony of early jazz with a splash of avant-garde spice.

Wallenstein's assured recitation focuses the musicians on the delicate interaction; his lines weave around theirs with deceptive ease. Acting in the moment, he departs from the text when a verbal substitution, like a harmonic substitution, strengthens the interplay of words and music. The result sounds as relaxed as a club date, a rare accomplishment in a studio environment.

To enhance the textural variety and render the ambience more intimate, Wallenstein breaks the ensemble into smaller units featuring different instrumental combinations. In a bass-voice duet, Jay Leonhart's vamping, sliding lines propel Wallenstein's flight from "New York to London" until it lands in the existential city of the self. "Waking to the Dark" features Evan Hause's haunting guitar and percussion effects welling around Wallenstein's intense recitation. On "Ghosts," Hause's percussion rattles bones while pianist John Hicks prods Wallenstein's impeccable delivery with a backbeat blues, then cuts to double tempo as the images of the dead quicken. Hause's eerily resonating guitar bends Hicks's chords into a surreal backdrop for "Devil Design," an anti-heroin poem that packs in power everything that it lacks in polemics. Jay Leonhart and Hicks render "Hotel Splendide" a late-night ballad in which Tony's despair stops one drink short of the lush life.

Vincent Chancey's questing french horn opens the three-poem "Tony's Sequence," in which Tony searches for a sense of himself, only to find his presence as illusory as his father's authority as a slaughterhouse foreman. The sequence moves at a reflective pace, except for the off-kilter piano-bass pulse that signals the onset of Tony's pot high.

While Tony's concerns are personal, Wallenstein's extend into the social. A second duet with Jay Leonhardt, on background vocals as well as bass, sends up "Another Salesman" hyping the ocean in a spiel that laces the language of ecology with corporate greed. "In the Board Room" continues the commentary while Michael Leonhart trumpets loss and anger above the ominous jaunt of Hick's vamp. The closing lines, "smiles, when they appear,/ seem stolen," set the tone for the illusory authority that threads through "Tony's Sequence." But the difference between Tony's personal and Wallenstein's social concerns isn't so clear-cut. In "Serving the State," the marching arco bass, muttering french horn and clanging percussion underscore the narrator's alienation as the "state" becomes a "state of mind." Through juxtaposing Tony and himself as narrators, Wallenstein links the personal to the political.

The full ensemble performs on "Dr. Trope" and "Rabbits on Castle Grounds." The horns lay back on "Dr. Trope" while the rhythm section's loping waltz propels Wallenstein through a gallows humor account of surgery. "Rabbits" features the exuberant romp of Vincent Chancey and Michael Leonhart over a march vamp that transforms the villanelle's repetitive lines into a manic hunt.

Wallenstein and his band work so well together on this eminently likeable recording that only additional solo space could have enhanced it. The one sustained solo, on "Leisure Time Out," features Michael Leonhart's exceptional plunger work. Chancey plays eight inventive measures on "Blues." Solos between stanzas of several poems would have strengthened the sense of spontaneity that characterizes Tony's Blues. This minor criticism aside,Tony's Blues presents fresh jazz poetry from one of the idiom's masters. In case you've missed his previous work, Tony's Blues is an excellent introduction to Wallenstein's savvy fusion of two difficult but compatible idioms.

Track Listing: Little Bestiary; New York to London; Fancy Takes Me Home; Hotel Splendide; Blues; Another Salesman; In The Boardroom; Tony's Sequence; Postmodernism; Blue Smoke; Dr. Trope; Ghosts; The Invitation; Under the Branches; Waking To The Dark; Serving The State; Devil Design; Sara Jones; Leisure time Out; Death; Failure; Rabbits.

Personnel: Barry Wallenstein, poetry, recitation; Vincent Chancey, french horn; Michael Leonhart, trumpet; John Hicks, piano; Jay Leonhart, bass, vocals; Evan Hause, percussion, guitar

Review from "Cadence Magazine"
August, 2001

1) ZAN GARDNER, HERE'S MY HEART, DREAMBOAT MEDIA 1051.

As Time Goes By / I've Grown Accustomed to His Face / Exactly Like You / You Don't Know What Love Is / Stolen Moments / How High the Moon / Metaphoric Heartbreak / The Way You Look Tonight / Some Other Time. 49:45.

Gardner, vcl; Dave Posmontier, p; John Swana, tpt, flgh, EVI; Chico Huff, b; Steve Holloway, d, perc; Tony Miceli, vib. No date provided, Broomall, PA.

2) GINA ROCHÉ, DAWNING OF A NEW WAY, DREAMBOAT MEDIA 1042.

Dawning of a New Way / Symptoms of a Greater Love / Let Your Dreams Become Reality / Summertime / The Gift of We / Tenderly / Brigas Nunca Mais / No More Blues / Use Me / Samba de Orfeu / The Shadow of Your Smile. 50:00.

Roché, vcl; Romero Lubambo, g; Jim Ridl, p; Tim Lekan, b; Chico Huff, b; Allison Miller, d. 6/15-16/99, city not provided.

3) BARRY WALLENSTEIN, TONY'S BLUES, CADENCE JAZZ 1124.

Little Bestiary / New York to London / Fancy Takes Me Home / Hotel Splendide / Blues / Another Salesman / In the Boardroom / Tony's Sequence / Postmodernism / Blue Smoke / Dr. Trope / Ghosts / The Invitation / Under the Branches / Waking to the Dark / Serving the State / Devil Design / Sara Jones / Leisure Time Out / Death / Failure / Rabbits. 58:33.

Wallenstein, voice; John Hicks, p; Jay Leonhart, b; Michael Leonhart, tpt; Vincent Chancey, Fr hn; Evan Hause, g. 4/26/00, New York, NY.

To hear a unique twist on the singing of standard material, check out the music of Gardner on (1). Although nearly all of the program consists of well-known Broadway and Tin Pan Alley tunes, they are presented with an offbeat melody line that makes the session entirely Gardner. She sings in a deep, sultry voice that exudes a smoky flavor filled with emotional drippings. Gardner puts a slight Latin spin or a hip Jazz beat into her work and takes the songs into a different realm with her diverse interpretation of the composers. Her singing style is reminiscent of Betty Carter's in the way she phrases. Gardner delves into the lowest tonal range with smoldering expressions that ooze with sensuality; then she swiftly lifts off with swinging vocal improvisations. Her voice can be quite beguiling.

Gardner's quartet puts out a big supportive sound behind her. Posmontier on piano and Swana on brass are responsive to Gardner's direction and kick the program into high gear with excellent solos during the vocal breaks. The rhythm team is also up-front-and-personal, filling in all the crevices with substance. None of this interferes with Gardner's approach. She moves headlong into the program, spitting out rounds of improvised melody lines while the band gets into her groove. Gardner also presents one of her compositions, the love song "Metaphoric Heartbreak," that has a haunting hint of "Angel Eyes" at its core. It is a great vehicle for Garner, allowing her to get emphatic with the unrequited love lyrics. Gardner gets strong support throughout from her band, but the strength of the recording comes from her style. She has produced a first-rate first album that highlights her exceptional vocal talents very effectively.

Vocalist Roché concentrates on samba songs and light Latin pieces on (2). She employs two highly rhythmic trios to support her efforts, one showcasing guitarist Lubambo and the other headed by pianist Ridl. The groups alternate on the program that features a mixture of original material and songs by noted composers such as Antonio Carlos Jobim and Luis Bonfa. Roché is a swinging singer who uses her soprano voice to traipse lightly over the Latin beat, which is added to most of the songs. She dabbles with scatting as well, splicing vocalese into the beat on several tunes. On one Jobim tune, she adds a bit of authenticity by singing in Portuguese. Roché's straight ballad approach as exhibited on "The Shadow of Your Smile" is a deviation yet displays her lovely voice with striking clarity.

The songs with the guitar trio are enhanced greatly through the playing of Lubambo. He has the essence of the samba in his blood, and his playing sways in loving response to this infectious music. Bassist Huff and drummer Miller are in synch, making the journey to Brazil very enjoyable. Miller's double time rhythm on "No More Blues" captures the spirit of Rio and the samba schools very nicely. When the piano trio backs Roché, the beat is still of Latin America but not necessarily of Brazil. These tunes have a more generic Latin flavor with influences of the blues and popular music embedded within. Ridl's solos are moderately percussive, putting oomph behind the already energetic movement of the singer. Roché is a commendable vocalist whose emphasis on the South American scene is well placed.

More and more artists seem to be testing the public's appetite for poetry and Jazz, and on (3), Wallenstein surrounds himself with exceptional musicians and puts together a very listenable album of word music. Wallenstein's voice is broadcast quality, and he uses it to good advantage in presenting material from his recent book, A Measure of Conduct (Ridgeway Press 1999). He has a very smooth delivery, and his verbal emphasis is impeccable. Wallenstein is not into heavy, philosophical prophesying, but instead he dwells more in the realm of the storyteller. His poetry deals with many of the ordinary events in life, yet it is deceptively heavy stuff. Just when you think the subject matter is plebeian, Wallenstein comes off with a profound statement that makes you step back and ponder the significance of what he said.

The music behind Wallenstein is finely spun. The band appears in alternating groupings and responds in improvised style to the hip statements that roll off Wallenstein's tongue so effortlessly. Hicks turns in a bluesy piano performance that zigs and zags around the words, and Jay Leonhart's bass puts the punctuation marks on them. Michael Leonhart, Jay's son, inserts well-placed trumpet grunts and growls into the verse line, while Chancey adds a touch of class to the proceedings on French horn with his mellow tone. Hause creates rolling electric waves when he musically interprets Wallenstein's verse. All in the band put their musical mark on the poetry. Wallenstein and these musicians make a forward leap in expressing this unique artistic format. They unite the two disciplines of poetry and Jazz with seamless quality.

Frank Rubolino

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