Steve Davis • Bluesthetic

 

American trombonist and composer Steve Davis is usually seen at the helm of proficient sextets whose blue-chip players confer a relevant dimension to his compositions. His fourth consecutive outing on the Smoke Sessions imprint is called Bluesthetic, an honest title that alludes to the harmonic progressions and foundational structures of the straight-ahead journeys he proposes. For this record, he decided to be the sole horn player, extending the harmonic possibilities by teaming up with monster jazz guitarist Peter Bernstein and vibraphonist Steve Nelson (both were in his 1998 album Vibe Up!), as well as the pianist Jeffrey Keezer. The bottom of the net is secured by the stupendous Christian McBride on bass and the efficient Willie Jones III on drums.

The opening number, “Encouragement”, is a churning Art Blakey-esque hard-bop piece with enough magnetism to draw you in. The players thrive by being on the same page, wisely opting for shorter solos here, which include everyone except the drummer. At places, however, especially during the second half, things get a little long in the tooth, improvisation-wise. Yet, the first portion brings a nimble strain of hard-bop-influenced and post-bop tunes that revives that immense joy we find in the jazz tradition.

“Silver at Sundown” is a tribute to pianist Horace Silver, being laid down with that jaunty feel and bohemian air that also characterizes Lee Morgan’s Sidewinder and Herbie Hancock’s Empyrean Isles. The soloists take their turns: Bernstein and Davis demonstrating clarity in the ideas; Nelson being highly articulated while navigating the chords he defines so well; and Keezer making things go inventively rhythmic. These four soloists also stretch on “Maybe So”, where McBride and Jones III join them by claiming their soloing spots. The drummer’s brushing technique is particularly attractive on the smooth jazz waltz “Faraway Dream”, which conjures up the modal atmospheres of Bobby Hutcherson, and the Ellingtonian ballad “Indigo to Azure”.

Both “Bedford Stroll”, inspired by the town and street where Davis currently lives in, and “They Wore 44”, whose blistering intensity was motivated by sports, boast a typical sound and drive that recalls J.J. Johnson and Paul Chambers. The former piece, marked by a synchronous snare strut on the B section, is another vehicle for the melodicists, whereas the latter’s main attraction is the unpredictable wallops thrown in by Keezer across different registers of the keyboard. The album ends with “Star for Chick”, a tribute to the late virtuosic pianist Chick Corea with whom Davis had been recording since 1998 in his post-bop-meets-fusion sextet Origin, and later in his Spanish Heart Band.
https://jazztrail.net/blog/steve-davis-bluesthetic-album-review


Biography:
Born in Worcester, MA in 1967, Davis was raised in Binghamton, NY and graduated in 1989 from  Hartt School’s Jackie McLean Institute. It was with McLean’s guidance and recommendation that Davis landed his first major performance with Art Blakey in NYC. In 98’ Steve winning the TDWR (Rising Star) Trombone Category and later named consecutively as Trombonist of the Year by The JJA – (2010-2013).
Widely regarded as one of today’s leading voices on the trombone. His lyrical, hard-swinging style first gained him broad recognition. Steve has released 20 albums including: Think Ahead (2017), Say When (2015), For Real & Gettin’ It Done (2014) featuring his longtime musical colleagues Larry Willis and Nat Reeves along with drummer Billy Williams, saxophonists Abraham Burton (For Real), Mike DiRubbo and trumpeter Josh Bruneau (Gettin’ It Done), in addition to over 100 recordings with names including: Chick Corea, Freddie Hubbard, Horace Silver, Cedar Walton, Hank Jones. In 2018 his original composition “Optimism” was included in Christian McBride’s Grammy Award winning album “Bringin’ it”. Steve Davis’ latest release with his sextet “Correlations” (label: Smoke Sessions Records) Steve features Joshua Bruneau, trumpet; Wayne Escoffery, tenor saxophone; Xavier Davis, piano; Dexron Dougles, bass; Johnathan Barber, drums; Caro Baptista, percussion on “Batista Revenge”.

He leads his groups All-Star quartet Larry Willis (Alone Together/Mapleshade 2006) and his exciting, Outlook Quintet featuring rising stars Mike DiRubbo (alto sax), David Bryant (piano), Dezron Douglas (bass) and Eric McPherson (drums) regularly performing at Smoke and Smalls Jazz Club (NYC); The Greater Hartford Jazz Festival, Baltimore’s Eubie Blake Center, The Richmond Jazz Society, Hartford Jazz Society.

Steve performs internationally with Dizzy Gillespie’s All-Stars, Jimmy Heath, Ron Carter. Chick Corea & My Spanish Heart Band, Origin, he has appeared at The Jimmy Fallon with Steve Wonder, at the White House Tribute to Ray Charles (PBS) and records with the collective unit One For All (Eric Alexander, Jim Rotondi, David Hazeltine, John Webber and Joe Farnsworth), Larry Willis, Harold Malberen.Widely regarded as one of today’s leading voices on the trombone. His lyrical, hard-swinging style first gained him broad recognition.
https://stevedavismusic.com/biography/

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De ‘Bluesthetic’, el nuevo trabajo del trombonista Steve Davis, sólo se puede decir que es una muy buena muestra de lo que es el hard bop moderno; excelentes fraseos y sobresaliente empaste en el sonido del grupo.

Si, por los motivos que sean (como dice un colegas, por haces o por bes), no conoces a Steve Davis hay que decir de él que fue el último músico en entrar en los míticos Jazz Messenger del legendario Art Blakey.

Este trombonista originario de Massachusetts, también formó parte de Origin y de Spanish Heart Band, ambas formaciones capitaneadas por Chick Corea.

‘Bluesthetic’ se compone de diez canciones todas ellas originales de Davis y que son de un nivel cuando menos de notable alto.

En este vigésimo disco firmado a su nombre Steve Davis rinde homenajes a dos músicos de jazz importantes en su vida; Horace Silver, al cual dedica’ Silver at Sundown’, y a Chick Corea con el emotivo ‘Star for Chick’.

Pero Davis también se inspira en su vida cotidiana, como en el caso de ‘Bedford Stroll’, que es el nombre y la calle donde vive actualmente, y ‘They Wore 44’, que hace referencia a las veces que, a lo largo de su vida, ha tenido como referencia el número 44 (por ejemplo, ese era el número de la calle en el que vivió parte de su infancia).

Pero para hacer un disco como este es necesario (aunque, acaso, no obligatorio) rodearse se buenos músicos, y el trombonista lo ha hecho. Con él están, el pianista Jeffrey Keezer, el guitarrista Peter Bernstein y el vibrafonista Steve Nelson (ambos ya colaboraron con él en su álbum de 1998 ‘Vibe Up!’), el contrabajista Christian McBride y el eficiente Willie Jones III a la batería.

Todos rinden a un gran nivel, pero siempre es un gusto escuchar la elegancia de Steve Nelson al vibráfono.

Este es uno de esos discos que se disfrutan desde el principio hasta el final y es de esos álbumes que te reconcilian con el jazz y los que hacen que, a pesar de los pesares, uno desee seguir escuchando esta música.

Vale.
http://www.distritojazz.com/discos-jazz/steve-davis-bluesthetic


Biografía:
Nacido en Worcester (Massachusetts) en 1967, Davis se crió en Binghamton (Nueva York) y se graduó en 1989 en el Instituto Jackie McLean de la Escuela Hartt. Fue con la orientación y recomendación de McLean que Davis consiguió su primera actuación importante con Art Blakey en Nueva York. En el 98' Steve ganó la categoría de trombón TDWR (Rising Star) y posteriormente fue nombrado consecutivamente como Trombonista del Año por la JJA - (2010-2013).
Ampliamente considerado como una de las principales voces de hoy en día en el trombón. Su estilo lírico y duro le valió un amplio reconocimiento. Steve ha publicado 20 álbumes, entre ellos: Think Ahead (2017), Say When (2015), For Real & Gettin' It Done (2014) con sus colegas musicales de toda la vida Larry Willis y Nat Reeves junto con el baterista Billy Williams, los saxofonistas Abraham Burton (For Real), Mike DiRubbo y el trompetista Josh Bruneau (Gettin' It Done), además de más de 100 grabaciones con nombres como: Chick Corea, Freddie Hubbard, Horace Silver, Cedar Walton, Hank Jones. En 2018 su composición original "Optimism" se incluyó en el álbum de Christian McBride ganador del premio Grammy "Bringin' it". El último lanzamiento de Steve Davis con su sexteto "Correlations" (sello: Smoke Sessions Records) Steve cuenta con Joshua Bruneau, trompeta; Wayne Escoffery, saxofón tenor; Xavier Davis, piano; Dexron Dougles, bajo; Johnathan Barber, batería; Caro Baptista, percusión en "Batista Revenge".

Dirige su grupo All-Star quartet Larry Willis (Alone Together/Mapleshade 2006) y su emocionante Outlook Quintet con las estrellas emergentes Mike DiRubbo (saxo alto), David Bryant (piano), Dezron Douglas (bajo) y Eric McPherson (batería) actuando regularmente en el Smoke and Smalls Jazz Club (NYC); The Greater Hartford Jazz Festival, Baltimore's Eubie Blake Center, The Richmond Jazz Society, Hartford Jazz Society.

Steve actúa internacionalmente con Dizzy Gillespie's All-Stars, Jimmy Heath, Ron Carter. Chick Corea & My Spanish Heart Band, Origin, ha aparecido en The Jimmy Fallon con Steve Wonder, en el Homenaje de la Casa Blanca a Ray Charles (PBS) y graba con la unidad colectiva One For All (Eric Alexander, Jim Rotondi, David Hazeltine, John Webber y Joe Farnsworth), Larry Willis, Harold Malberen.Ampliamente considerado como una de las principales voces actuales del trombón. Su estilo lírico y duro le valió un amplio reconocimiento.
https://stevedavismusic.com/biography/


stevedavismusic.com ...

Tracks:
1 - Encouragement
2 - Silver at Sundown
3 - Maybe So
4 - Bedford Strolle
5 - Faraway Dream
6 - They Wore 44
7 - Off the Cuff
8 - Indigo to Azure
9 - Bluesthetic
10 - A Star for Chick


Credits:
Steve Davis: trombone;
Peter Bernstein: guitar;
Steve Nelson: vibraphone;
Jeoffrey Keezer: piano;
Christian McBride: bass;
Willie Jones III: drums.

2022

 

 

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