Big Byrd: The Essence, Pt. 2

Performer: Ahmad Jamal
Artist: Donald Byrd; Idris Muhammad
Engineer: Alain Francais; Jim Anderson
Producer: Jean-Francois Deiber
Distributor: E1 Distribution (USA)

Notes: Personnel: Ahmad Jamal (piano); Donald Byrd (trumpet); Joe Kennedy, Jr. (violin); Jamil Nasser, James Cammack (bass); Idris Muhammad (drums); Manolo Badrena (percussion). Recorded at Studios Marcadet, La Plaine Saint-Denis, France and Clinton Studios, New York, New York between October 1994 & February 1995. The elements that made The Essence Part One such a success - bright, crisp, rhythmically alive piano work often revolving around a tense bass ostinato and propulsive percussion - are abundantly present on Part Two, which was drawn from the same Paris and New York sessions but released a year after its predecessor. In no way is this a collection of leftovers; the quality level is so high that one can only conclude that marketing considerations alone prevented The Essence from being issued as a double album in the first place. Jamal fields two trios, anchored on bass by James Cammack in the Paris sessions and former colleague Jamil Nasser in the New York ones and by drummer Idris Muhammad on both. Everyone gets an extra jolt of momentum whenever the Afro-Latin percussion of Manolo Badrena goes into action, and violinist Joe Kennedy Jr. adds a potent, slightly raw-edged solo voice to "Manhattan Relfections." A muted, skittering Donald Byrd appears only on the title track - hence its name - which winds its way through several tempo changes and dramatically charged sections over a vast 15-minute timespan. Into his mid-60s, Jamal remained as distinctive and inventive a pianist as ever, with delightful surprises lurking around every bend. ~ Richard S. Ginell

Entertainment Weekly (5/16/97, p.117) - "...sounds a bit too mild here for his own good, but he's given a boost from the excellent, if overlooked, violinist Joe Kennedy Jr. and noted trumpeter Donald Byrd, who guest on one track each. With a player like Jamal, politeness, it seems, can be a detriment." - Rating: B JazzTimes (10/97, p.98) - "...Ahmad Jamal is one of the great small band leaders of our time...bringing a sense of swinging elegance to the music that is uniquely his own imprint..."

With his spare, subtle swing, pianist Ahmad Jamal is an important figure in both mainstream and post-bop jazz. The commercial success of his 1950s trio recordings made important inroads for jazz. His influence on Miles Davis was acknowledged by the trumpeter himself, who recorded many tunes from Jamal's repertoire. Incredibly, Jamal maintained his verve and artistic relevance all the way into the 21st century, long after many of his contemporaries had passed on.

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