Hendrik Meurkens - Sambatropolis (2008)

Playing the vibes and the harmonica is a rather unusual combination. Hendrik Meurkens was drawn to these instruments after he heard Lionel Hampton play the vibraphone on Benny Goodman's Live at Carnegie Hall (Columbia, 1938) and, a few years later, the harmonica of Toots Thielemans. Even as he emerged as an adept player of these instruments, Meurkens was dipping into jazz, and particularly bebop. But he was also pursuing another tangent in Brazilian music. Meurkens has long been letting the two streams converge to give his compositions a particular scope and depth. Meurkens varies the line-up of his bands to give his music more pith and character. He gets off on the right note assimilating swing on the heated "Sambatropolis." Jed Levy and Rodrigo Ursaia fire up the swing on their tenor saxophones, while letting a bop impulse add dimension and tensility. Meurkens brings his own vision to bear, swerving in and out of the melody with broad, facile strokes. Besides, his conversation with the sax men is decidedly topnotch. The mood is quite different on the intimate "Ocean Lights." The ballad glows, given its soul by Meurkens on harmonica; however, it wouldn't quite be the same without pianist Helio Alves, who is not only full of fluid ideas, but is also an empathic complement. Antonio Carlos Jobim's "Voce Vai Ver" is another hallmark. The gentle strains of the bossa are dewdrops from the vibes; pretty yes, but also creating a splash and leaving an impress. "Choro Da Neve" spirals on the chorinho. The heady pulse is fanned by Meurkens on the harmonica with Adriano Santos driving the rhythm on the drums. Adding to the excitement are exhilarating contributions from Alves and Ursaia. Meurkens has come up with a winning blend, once more. ~ by Jerry D'Souza, AAJ. 

ZOHO Records, ZM 200801, 2008
Recorded 21st & 22nd March, 2007 at Acoustic Recording, Brooklyn, New York 

Musicians:
Hendrik Meurkens - Harmonica, Vibraphone (#2,7,8,10,11)
Jed Levy - Tenor Saxophone (#1,5,8,10,11), Flute (#2)
Rodrigo Ursaia - Tenor Saxophone (#1,2,4-6,9), Flute (#3,7)
Helio Alves - Piano (#1-7,9,10)
Ian MacDonald - Piano (#8,11)
Gustavo Amarante - Bass
Mauricio Zottarelli - Drums (#1)
Adriano Santos - Drums (#2,4,6-11)
Duduka da Fonseca - Drums (#3,5)
Pedro Ramos - Cavaquinho (#9) 

Tracks:
01. Sambatropolis {Hendrik Meurkens} (5:49)
02. Mem Lá Nem Cá {Adriano Giffoni} (5:00)
03. Ocean Light {Hendrik Meurkens} (5:26)
04. The Bee {Hendrik Meurkens} (4:27)
05. Fotografia {Antônio Carlos Jobim} (5:25)
06. Hot And Stuffy {Hendrik Meurkens} (3:07)
07. Você Vai Ver {Antônio Carlos Jobim} (4:55)
08. You Don't Know What Love Is {Don Raye, Gene De Paul} (6:25)
09. Choro Da Neve {Hendrik Meurkens} (4:26)
10. A Summer In San Francisco {Hendrik Meurkens} (5:54)
11. Bernie's Tune {Bernie Miller, Jerry Leiber, Mike Stoller} (4:55) 

Total Time: 55:54 

Credits:
Producer - Hendrik Meurkens
Engineer, Mixing - Michael Brorby
Photography - Jack Frisch
Liner Notes - Bill Milkowski 

Fotografia

Hendrik Meurkens - New York Nights (1999)

The chromatic harmonica of Hendrik Meurkens is profound, lyrical, fluid, and swinging on his second release for the Netherlands-based A-Records label. New York Nights features a half dozen standards and four delightful originals performed by the harmonica master with Eric Alexander on tenor saxophone, Italian pianist Dado Moroni, bassist Chris Berger, and drummer Jimmy Cobb and together they weave a great tapestry of bebop, swing, and heart-wrenching ballads. Meurkens is an excellent composer as evidenced by the title track, "New York Nights," a pensive, nocturnal ballad. He plays a beautiful melody that is alternated by Eric Alexander's rendition of the bridge with excellent solos from them both. This combination of instruments - harmonica and saxophone - is very nice to hear on this wonderful collection of great songs. Alexander plays some great long lines and short phrases on "It Could Happen to You" with great improvisations by pianist Dado Moroni. The only drawback to this CD is that it does not include any compositions that feature Meurkens playing vibes as on "Mundell's Moods" or the sweet sambas he played on Samba Importado and In a Sentimental Mood. However, his covers of the priceless "You Stepped out of a Dream," "I Didn't Know What Time It Was," and Charlie Parker's blazing "Scrapple From the Apple" make up for that and add an extra layer of excitement and variety to this fantastic hour of great jazz. ~ by Paula Edelstein, AMG. 

A-Records, AL 73197, 2000
Recorded 19th & 20th December, 1999 at Current Sounds, New York 

Musicians:
Hendrik Meurkens - Harmonica
Eric Alexander - Tenor Saxophone (#2,3,5,8)
Dado Moroni - Piano
Chris Berger - Bass
Jimmy Cobb - Drums 

Tracks:
01. I Didn't Know What Time It Was {Lorenz Hart, Richard Rodgers} (5:53)
02. It Could Happen To You {Johnny Burke, James Van Heusen} (5:31)
03. New York Nights {Hendrik Meurkens} (6:09)
04. You Stepped Out Of A Dream {Nacio Herb Brown, Gus Kahn} (2:40)
05. Slidin' {Hendrik Meurkens} (5:49)
06. Bittersweet {Sam Jones} (6:26)
07. My Foolish Heart {Ned Washington, Victor Young} (7:03)
08. The Cottage {Hendrik Meurkens} (5:03)
09. Second Waltz {Hendrik Meurkens} (5:49)
10. Scrapple From The Apple {Charlie Parker} (4:50) 

Total Time: 55:18 

Credits:
Producer - Hendrik Meurkens
Engineer, Mixing - Joseph Bartoldus
Photography - Joost Leijen
Liner Notes - Hein van de Geyn 

It Could Happen To You