Jazz / Contemporary Jazz; Cabaret
Recorded: May 8 & 22, 1989, Studio A, Universal Recording, Chicago
Pianist/vocalist Patricia Barber's recording debut, Split, is a fairly straight-ahead affair featuring the idiosyncratic stylist on various standards and originals. Showcasing her unique approach to jazz, the album finds Barber mixing pointed and minimalist lines à la Chet Baker with a dramatic cabaret vocal style and complex harmonic post-bop passages -- a template that longtime fans will recognize. To these ends, Barber opens with a brisk Latin version of "Early Autumn," takes a dusky vocal turn on "Easy to Love," and shows her cerebral side on such originals as "Winter Illusion." Joining Barber here are bassist Michael Arnopol and drummer Mark Walker. [Originally released on Floyd Records in 1989, Koch reissued the disc in 2004.]
---Matt Collar, allmusic
Liner Note Author: Neil Tesser
Patricia Barber - vocals, piano
Michael Arnopol - bass guitar
Mark Walker - drums |
