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| In the Cut [Japan version] |
| Ray Bryant |
japán
első megjelenés éve: 1974
40 perc |
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| (2005)
[ LIMITED ]
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CD |
| 8.289 Ft
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| 1. | I'll Be There
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| 2. | Andalusian Nights
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| 3. | Stop, Look, Listen (To Your Heart)/You Are Everything
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| 4. | Cool Struttin'
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| 5. | Land of Make Believe
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| 6. | In the Cut
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| 7. | Watermelon Man
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Jazz / Soul-Jazz
Ray Bryant - Piano, Piano (Electric)
Alfred Brown Viola
Bob Scerbo Production Supervisor
Charles Stepney Horn Arrangements, Moog Synthesizer, String Arrangements
Diana Halprin Violin
Don Hahn Mixing, Engineer
Emanuel Green Violin
Emanuel Vardi Viola
Esmond Edwards Producer
George Marge Flute, Sax (Tenor), Oboe
Gwen Williams Coordination
Harry Glickman Violin
Jimmy Johnson, Jr. Drums
Jimmy Ponder Guitar, Soloist, Guitar (Rhythm)
Joe Wilder Trumpet
John Tropea Guitar (Acoustic), Guitar
Julien Barber Viola
Margaret Ross Harp
Marvin Stamm Trumpet
Max Polikoff Violin
Montego Joe Conga, Drums
Neil Terk Art Direction
Paul Gershman Violin
Richard Davis Bass
Ron Carter Bass
Selwart Clarke Viola
Skip Juried Engineer
Stanley Clarke Bass
Theodore Israel Viola
Limited edition Japanese pressing has been remastered and comes in a miniature LP sleeve.
Recorded in 1974, Ray Bryant's In the Cut is the one recording in his career that stands out from all the others -- not necessarily because it is the best thing he ever cut, but because it is unlike anything in his vast oeuvre. Bryant and producer Esmond Edwards set out to make a contemporary album while the great pianist was with Cadet. No solo, no trio, no quartet -- this time out, Bryant's In the Cut is recorded with a full-on big band playing everything from contemporary soul tunes (such as the Jacksons' "I'll Be There," which opens this remarkable offering) to his own hard bop blues numbers such as "Cool Struttin'" and the title track to tough line-punchers like Herbie Hancock's "Watermelon Man." The entire Cadet house band was involved in this baby, including Charles Stepney, who did all the horn and, yes, string arrangements (and plays some synth, too). Bryant also plays a fair amount of electric piano here, and is accompanied by, among others, guitarists Jimmy Ponder and John Tropea, bassists Stanley Clarke and Ron Carter, drummer Jimmy Johnson, percussionist and conguero Montego Joe, trumpeters Marvin Stamm and Joe Wilder, and George Marge on tenor, flute, and oboe. The sound of In the Cut is literally startling. Bryant's trademark gait on the piano is immediate from the very opening bars of "I'll Be There," with its gospel and melodic blues touch, but when Clarke's funky bassline backed by Johnson's drums pops in and the guitars roll out, it's a whole new ball game -- especially when the lithe and lilting flute of Marge accents Bryant's beautiful fat chords on the melody and his comping, which creates an alternate bassline. When the horns enter full-force, it's a new sound world -- disorienting, yes, especially if you can't let yourself get beyond what Bryant's "normal" m.o. is. But the groove -- gentle, soulful, and pronounced -- is everywhere in these tracks.
Edwards' "Andalusian Nights" is even more radical as it commences with the sound of electric piano, synth, Carter's electric bass, hand percussion, and the snare/hi-hat. Tropea's flamenco chords fill the space against Ponder's Wes Montgomery lead groove in the melody, which is exotic and gorgeous. The horns simply underscore the ends of lines with a rhythmic pulse, and it would seem Bryant is all but absent -- until he solos, and then all bets are off. The wildest thing here is a medley of the Philly soul "Stop, Look, Listen (To Your Heart)" and "You Are Everything" by Thom Bell and Linda Creed. It's got spacy synth by Stepney, and Bryant articulates the gentle melody with enough force to glide above the strings, guitars, and drums. Margaret Ross' harp decorates the fluid lines with sharp chords, plucked just tautly enough to get Bryant to punch a little with that left hand. His solo is pure gentle funk. His right hand is almost liquid as he finds the accents in the same way a vocalist would, and he trills and quarters them. Bryant's own "Cool Struttin'" is Latin funk with deep gospel and blues overtones. Hued as dark as night, it's a steamy one with the killer string arrangement by Stepney holding the space for the horns to move up against those funky piano lines. It's the toughest tune here, physical and smooth simultaneously. Bryant's character is unmistakable even on the electric piano, and it adds so much to the sheeny nature of the arrangement that it all gets melded into a taut groover.
Likewise, the title track comes right out of the I-IV-V blues, and Bryant comps behind the horns playing the melody before the strings and things enter the groove. And its slow creep is infectious, getting inside the backbone, making it slip and creating a greasy feel even though the entire thing is wonderfully polished -- Marge's flute lines as they twin with Ponder's are what soul-jazz is all about. Bryant's acoustic piano is hard on the midrange keys and he lets that big fat R&B nature inherent in the best of his playing come pouring out in the solo. "Watermelon Man" closes the set, and there's a ton of air in its presentation. Bryant's approach to the tune is not unlike that of Ramsey Lewis. He's on the one, pumping the blues out of it even as the rhythm section holds him right against the front of the beat. The strings are here for ornamentation this time and to underscore the grooves, not be part of them. It's a tough tempo that this baby is played to, but it's as if Bryant is stating that no matter what has transpired over the previous 34 minutes, he's in charge and he's more himself than ever. The joyous angle of his fat chords and those upper-register fills and vamps that occur irregularly make his playing as unpredictably great as ever. Ponder and Tropea are wonderfully sympathetic players here, and Bryant works well with them; that said, you'd think he'd been playing with strings backing him his entire career. The album didn't sell and that's a drag, because it's a classic. It has never been issued stateside on CD, and was available from the Verve vault for download briefly -- at this writing it is only available on CD from Japan. That said, there are used copies that show up on auctions and Internet big boxes quite often, and for reasonable prices. Seek this out. It's the pink elephant in Bryant's catalog to be sure, but it's as fine a '70s jazz date as you are likely to find. It's so inside, it's outside. ~ Thom Jurek, All Music Guide
Ray Bryant
Active Decades: '50s, '60s, '70s, '80s, '90s and '00s
Born: Dec 24, 1931 in Philadelphia, PA
Genre: Jazz
Styles: Bop, Soul-Jazz, Jazz Blues, Mainstream Jazz
Although he could always play bop, Ray Bryant's playing combines together older elements (including blues, boogie-woogie, gospel, and even stride) into a distinctive, soulful, and swinging style; no one plays "After Hours" quite like him.
The younger brother of bassist Tommy Bryant and the uncle of Kevin and Robin Eubanks (his sister is their mother), Bryant started his career playing with Tiny Grimes in the late '40s. He became the house pianist at the Blue Note in Philadelphia in 1953, where he backed classic jazz greats (including Charlie Parker, Miles Davis, and Lester Young) and made important contacts. He accompanied Carmen McRae (1956-1957), recorded with Coleman Hawkins and Roy Eldridge at the 1957 Newport Jazz Festival (taking a brilliant solo on an exciting version of "I Can't Believe That You're in Love With Me"), and played with Jo Jones' trio (1958). Bryant settled in New York in 1959; played with Sonny Rollins, Charlie Shavers, and Curtis Fuller; and soon had his own trio. He had a few funky commercial hits (including "Little Susie" and "Cubano Chant") which kept him working for decades. Bryant recorded often throughout his career (most notably for Epic, Prestige, Columbia, Sue, Cadet, Atlantic, Pablo, and Emarcy), and even his dates on electric piano in the '70s are generally rewarding. However, Ray Bryant is heard at his best when playing the blues on unaccompanied acoustic piano.
--- Scott Yanow, All Music Guide |
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