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Joey DeFranceso Trio plus Bobby Hutcherson at the Kuumbwa Jazz Canter 1/22 |
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Written by Don Berryman
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Tuesday, 16 January 2007 |
 Joey DeFrancesco © Andrea Canter
One his latest recording
Organic Vibes with jazz masters
vibraphonist Bobby Hutcherson and tenor sax great George Coleman, Joey
transcends the traditional organ jazz trio concept with more
challenging arrangements and advanced harmonies. Also contributing
throughout are DeFrancesco's drummer Byron "Wookie" Landham along with
Jake Langley on guitar and tenor saxophonist Ron Blake.
 Bobby Hutcherson
Joey says the idea of a project with Hutcherson came from an early
encounter the two had in Pittsburgh. "About three years ago we played
together at the Craftsman's Guild," explains Joey. It was a special
band that was put together for that event. Of course, I've been
listening to him forever and have always loved his playing on all of
his records. I went see Bobby at the Jazz Showcase. After hearing his
set, I though to myself, 'man, I wanna make a record with this guy." I
actually asked him that night and he said, Sure, give me a call. I'm so
pleased that it happened. Bobby is one of the true innovators in this
music. ... I always loved the sound of organ and vibes together," says
DeFrancesco. "They're very similar but that combination hasn't really
been done a lot. Larry Young made a record with Bobby called Street of
Dreams, and I remember listening to that a lot when I was a kid."
Joey brings a portion of that team, his burning trio including his
trusted drummer Byron "Wookie" Landham along with Jake Langley cookin'
on guitar on this tour.
Bobby Hutcherson played as part
of a loose collective of musicians associated with Blue Note in the
1960s, including McCoy Tyner, tenor saxophonists Wayne Shorter and Joe
Henderson, trombonist Grachan Moncur III, pianist Andrew Hill, drummer
Joe Chambers and trumpeter Freddie Hubbard, all of whom were also
ambitious composers. In the early 60s Hutcherson also worked with Eric
Dolphy on some of the most significant jazz recordings of the time,
including Eric Dolphy's Out to Lunch.
Hutcherson's compositional creativity is documented on a series of
classic albums, such as Dialogue,
Components and The Kicker. Stick-Up from 1966 which, like The Kicker, features tenor
saxophonist Joe Henderson, is also notable for the dynamic playing of
the irrepressible drummer Billy Higgins. It was also Hutcherson's first
recording with pianist McCoy Tyner. Jake Langlely
Guitar whiz Jake Langley from
Canada is firmly ensconced in Joey's trio filling a spot once occupied
by guitar great Paul Bollenbeck. A skillful player with roots deep in
the blues the 30 year old, Toronto-based musician was selected as
Guitarist of the Year in the 2004 National Jazz Awards. "Organ trio
jazz is really my thing," Langley explains. "We're not inventing
anything new, but someone has to keep the tradition alive." Langley
spent a year touring with organist Merle Saunders, who used to play
with Jerry Garcia. and he spent another year in New York City studying
with jazz greats Jim Hall and Pat Martino. You can hear their influence
in Jake's polished, thoughtful guitar lines. Langley produces echoes of
Wes Montgomery and Kenny Burrell too.
Byron "Wookie" Landham is on
swinging drummer. He has been playing with Joey since the 1980s and has
developed such a tight musical relationship that they almost function
as a single unit in performance. Many in the Twin Cities remember the
Hot Summer Jazz Festival of 2003 when Joey and Byron played through an
extremely severer thunderstorm, lightning was flashing the wind was
blowing everything around and Byron was swinging so hard he was
steaming. Those of us who didn't run for cover, rush to stand near the
stage while the water rose and the band kept burning.
 Byron
Catch this burning quartet at the Kuumbwa Jazz Center in Santa Cruz, January 22nd.
Visit www.kuumbwajazz.org for details.
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 Saturday, 05 July 2008
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