JAZZBO NOTES ESSENTIAL RECORDING
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On his solo efforts, pianist Jacky Terrason can fall victim to a Gallic nonchalance, as if it would be uncool to show too much excitement or be too demonstrative. Teaming up with vibraphonist Stefon Harris on Kindred (released on the Blue Note label) seems to have kindled Terrason’s competitive instincts, and the friendly competition between the two musicians has done wonders for his energy.
A case in point is the standard which opens Kindred, My Foolish Heart. The tune starts out without the rhythm section, Harris deconstructing the melody while Terrasson interpolates commentary. After bassist Tarus Mateen and drummer Terreon Gully join in, the approach continues with Harris and Terrasson freely soloing or playing snatches of the melody. The vibraphone and the piano lines intersect, completing the other musician’s thoughts or providing contrast, sometimes in the same phrase. When you think about it, this is a perfect way to approach overworked standards like My Foolish Heart. Everyone knows the melody by heart, so in a sense, the listener supplies the melody and the chords and the musicians are set free to invent.
The duo takes the identical approach on Cole Porter’s What Is This Thing Called Love?, only even more abstract, which is just fine with me. The rhythm section never joins in on this one.
Their reading of the moldy oldy Summertime is not quite as successful. Stefon Harris is smart enough to know that he needs to radically rework the tune in some way to avoid making listeners nod off. He provides a modern R&B-ish descending cadence as a background for the melody. It’s different, but not different enough to avoid tedium. Taking a cue from the cadence, the rhythm section imbues the choruses that back Harris’ and Terrasson’s improvisations with intimations of modern R&B drumming. It makes this version of Summertime far less sleepy than normal. The solos are predictably fine. Maybe I’m being too critical because I’ve heard the tune way too many times.
The R&B reference is even more explicit on Body & Soul, surely one of the most overplayed tunes in the jazz repertoire. Stefon Harris has written a new vamp for the tune, which allows us to leave the over familiar chord progression behind to rest our ears. He even ends the tune on the vamp. Good for him. It’s a bold attempt to reclaim Body & Soul from the ranks of “Oh, no. Not again!” I still could have done without it, though.
The stellar interplay of Stefon Harris and Jacky Terrasson is even more rewarding on the less familiar covers and originals.
On the uptempo numbers, the rhythm section cooks and Harris and Terrasson frequently step on each other’s improvisations — not all the time, just enough to keep things interesting. On Tank’s Tune, the band ends the performance by repeating a rhythmic chordal phrase over which drummer Terreon Gully solos. I’ve always loved that approach to drum solos, and it’s quite exciting here.
On the ballads, Jacky Terrasson displays the sensitive touch he is so well known for, but Stefon Harris is no slouch when it comes to lyricism either.
In fact, Jacky Terrasson is not the only beneficiary of this collaboration. Stefon Harris plays with his usual youthful bravado, but to my ears, there is a new depth in his harmonic explorations.
As long as it doesn’t devolve into a macho pissing match, collaborations between musical equals can stimulate artistic growth. That certainly seems to be the case on Kindred.
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