In many ways, guitarist Charlie Apicella has devoted himself to a kind of historical reenactment. On all of his previous albums, which have included tributes to Jack McDuff and B.B. King, Apicella faithfully has sought to channel an era of American music when hard-bop and r&b reigned and existed as a sort of lingua franca.
His latest album, Groove Machine (OA2), is no exception. There are a number of instances when Apicella nods to the past as he dutifully covers funky, down-home tracks like Lou Donaldson’s “Hot Dog” and Willis Jackson’s “Brother Elijah.” But the guitarist still manages to keep things fresh. The album, his sixth as a leader, is made up primarily of his own compositions, including the cool, swinging “Three Sided” and “Along The Southern Coast”—with a soulful cameo from violinist Amy Bateman.
“They all sound like something you would have heard in 1954,” Apicella recently said over the phone from his New York apartment.
The record showcases Apicella’s Iron City band, which includes drummer Alan Korzin, tenor saxophonist Gene Ghee, trumpeter Freddie Hendrix, conguero Mayra Casales and organist Radam Schwartz, who contributed one composition, “Calypso Blue.” “All the music grooves,” Apicella said. “There are no intros to the tunes that are washy—we get right to the point, just like Jack McDuff.”
If Apicella seems like a throwback, it’s because he is. He is in his mid-30s, but doesn’t listen to much contemporary jazz, most of which bores him—there is, he said, “an obnoxious level of improvisational hysterics.”
Instead, he prefers to take inspiration from earlier jazz guitarists like Herb Ellis, Wes Montgomery and Kenny Burrell. And on his records, he tries to align himself with musicians who have performed with mid-century titans of jazz. Schwartz, for instance, played with Eddie “Lockjaw” Davis and David “Fathead” Newman.
“He doesn’t have super-duper chops, but he plays tastefully, and you can tell that he’s studied the tradition of the guitar,” said Hendrix, who’s frequently collaborated with Apicella and further describes him as a deeply melodic guitarist along the lines of Grant Green.
Apicella picked up the guitar relatively late, buying his first instrument during his senior year of high school. He studied jazz on the side while a student at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, where Yusef Lateef was his teacher. And since coming to New York, Apicella has done his best to seek out elders, even though, as he puts it, “The way that guys used to learn isn’t really around anymore.” Still, he’s managed to study under guitarists Pat Martino and Dave Stryker, who produced two of Apicella’s records.
According to Hendrix, Apicella has “really come into his own within these past few years.” The guitarist also has established himself as an educator with his TrueFire video lessons and as an instructor at the New York Jazz Workshop.
But Apicella still seems to view himself primarily as a student of the past. Regarding future albums, he said that he’s like to record a tribute to Jimi Hendrix, as well as another paean to B.B. King—this time with a vocalist. DB
https://downbeat.com/news/detail/charlie-apicella-channeling-the-past
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En muchos sentidos, el guitarrista Charlie Apicella se ha dedicado a una especie de recreación histórica. En todos sus álbumes anteriores, que incluyen homenajes a Jack McDuff y B.B. King, Apicella ha tratado fielmente de canalizar una época de la música estadounidense en la que reinaban el hard-bop y el r&b y existían como una especie de lingua franca.
Su último álbum, Groove Machine (OA2), no es una excepción. Hay varios casos en los que Apicella hace un guiño al pasado, ya que versiona fielmente temas funky y caseros como "Hot Dog" de Lou Donaldson y "Brother Elijah" de Willis Jackson. Pero el guitarrista se las arregla para mantener las cosas frescas. El álbum, su sexto como líder, se compone principalmente de sus propias composiciones, entre las que se incluyen las frescas y oscilantes "Three Sided" y "Along The Southern Coast", con un conmovedor cameo de la violinista Amy Bateman.
"Todas suenan como algo que se hubiera escuchado en 1954", dijo recientemente Apicella por teléfono desde su apartamento de Nueva York.
El disco presenta a la banda Iron City de Apicella, que incluye al baterista Alan Korzin, al saxofonista tenor Gene Ghee, al trompetista Freddie Hendrix, a la conguero Mayra Casales y al organista Radam Schwartz, quien contribuyó con una composición, "Calypso Blue". "Toda la música tiene ritmo", dijo Apicella. "No hay intros de las melodías que sean sensibleras; vamos directamente al grano, como Jack McDuff".
Si Apicella parece un retroceso, es porque lo es. Tiene unos 30 años, pero no escucha mucho jazz contemporáneo, la mayoría del cual le aburre; hay, dice, "un nivel odioso de histeria improvisada".
En su lugar, prefiere inspirarse en guitarristas de jazz anteriores como Herb Ellis, Wes Montgomery y Kenny Burrell. Y en sus discos, intenta alinearse con músicos que han tocado con titanes del jazz de mediados de siglo. Schwartz, por ejemplo, tocó con Eddie "Lockjaw" Davis y David "Fathead" Newman.
"No tiene unas habilidades extraordinarias, pero toca con gusto y se nota que ha estudiado la tradición de la guitarra", dice Hendrix, que ha colaborado a menudo con Apicella y lo describe como un guitarrista profundamente melódico en la línea de Grant Green.
Apicella empezó a tocar la guitarra relativamente tarde, comprando su primer instrumento en el último año de instituto. Estudió jazz mientras estudiaba en la Universidad de Massachusetts Amherst, donde Yusef Lateef fue su profesor. Y desde que llegó a Nueva York, Apicella ha hecho todo lo posible por buscar a los mayores, aunque, como él dice, "la forma en que los chicos solían aprender ya no existe". Aun así, ha conseguido estudiar con los guitarristas Pat Martino y Dave Stryker, que ha producido dos de los discos de Apicella.
Según Hendrix, Apicella "se ha convertido realmente en alguien importante en estos últimos años". El guitarrista también se ha establecido como educador con sus lecciones de vídeo TrueFire y como instructor en el New York Jazz Workshop.
Pero Apicella parece seguir viéndose principalmente como un estudiante del pasado. En cuanto a futuros álbumes, dijo que le gustaría grabar un homenaje a Jimi Hendrix, así como otro canto a B.B. King, esta vez con un vocalista. DB
https://downbeat.com/news/detail/charlie-apicella-channeling-the-past
Colaborador / Contributor: Michel
Tracks:
1 - I Hear A Symphony
2 - Idris
3 - In The Grass
4 - Big Boss
5 - Spoonful
6 - Amalfi
7 - The Selma March
8 - Sunday Mornin'
2014
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