Ravi Coltrane - Spirit Fiction (2012)

A career on the saxophone with one of the most freethinking saxophonists in music history for a father has to be a tough call. Now 46, Ravi Coltrane, son of John, has often chosen to be a sympathetic sideman rather than the boss. But his Blue Note Records debut as a leader feels like a giant step. The tracks are split between two groups (a quartet with Luis Perdomo on piano, and a superb quintet with Geri Allen at the keys, and Ralph Alessi on trumpet), playing an arrestingly original postbop repertoire, plus covers of pieces by Ornette Coleman and Paul Motian. There are delicate improv conversations between Coltrane and Alessi, passages in which Geri Allen and drummer Eric Harland uncannily recall the sound of the young Herbie Hancock and Tony Williams in the Miles Davis quintet, quiet tone-bending sax ruminations and a deliciously ramshackle version of Ornette Coleman's Check Out Time. It genuinely sounds like a coming-of-age for Ravi Coltrane. ~ John Fordham, The Guardian. 

Blue Note Records, 509999 18937 2 7, 2012
Recorded (#1,3,4,7,11) at Bennett's Studios, Englewood, New Jersey
Recorded (#2,5,8,9,10) at Sear Sound, New York City
Recorded (#6) at Systems Two Recording, Brooklyn, New York 

Musicians:
Ravi Coltrane - Tenor & Soprano Saxes
Joe Lovano - Tenor Sax (#9,10)
Luis Perdomo - Piano (#1,3,4,7,11)
Drew Gress - Bass (#1,3,4,7,11)
E.J. Strickland - Drums (#1,3,4,6,7,11)
Ralph Alessi - Trumpet (#2,5,8,9)
Geri Allen - Piano (#2,5,8-10)
James Genus - Bass (#2,5,8,9)
Eric Harland - Drums (#2,5,8,9)

Tracks:
01. Roads Cross {Gress, Strickland, Perdomo, Coltrane} (5:04)
02. Klepto {Ralph Alessi} (7:30)
03. Spirit Fiction {Gress, Strickland, Perdomo, Coltrane} (52:28)
04. The Change, My Girl {Ravi Coltrane} (6:46)
05. Who Wants Ice Cream {Ralph Alessi} (6:32)
06. Spring & Hudson {Ravi Coltrane} (2:21)
07. Cross Roads {Gress, Strickland, Perdomo, Coltrane} (5 (4:03)
08. Yellow Cat {Ralph Alessi} (6:50)
09. Check Out Time {Ornette Coleman} (7:26)
10. Fantasm {Paul Motian} (4:08)
11. Marilyn & Tammy {Ravi Coltrane} (5:42) 

Total Time: 58:57 

Credits:
Producer, Mixing - Ravi Coltrane
Producer, Mixing, Liner Notes - Joe Lovano
Executive-Producer - Bruce Lundvall
Recording Engineer - Dave Kowalski (#1,3,4,7,11)
Recording & Mixing Engineer - Chris Allen (#2,5,8-10)
Recording Engineer - Joe Marchiano (#6)
Mixing Engineer - Ravi Coltrane, Steve Genewick (#1,3,4,6,7,11)
Mixing Engineer - Joe Lovano (#2,5,8-10)
Mastering Engineer - Allan Tucker
Art Direction, Design - Hayden Miller
Photography - Darlene Devita 

Spirit Fiction

Makoto Kuriya - X-Bar Trio (1992)

Makoto Kuriya's first piano trio album, which at the time created quite an outcry with its extremely contemporary opening song "Survival Instinct." However, it still managed to receive an honorable mention by winning a recording award that year. For this album, Makoto is joined by bassist James Genus, his associate from his time in the US, and with Masahiko Osaka, a young drummer who returned to Japan around the same time as Makoto. The original first pressing was released in 1992. A first pressing of the reissue was then released in 1997. Overall, it is a provocative work with a popular but innovative sound, that yields a riveting contemporary jazz influence, with some tantalizing piano executions backed by a solid rhythm section. Well recommended! 

Paddle Wheel Records, KICJ-110, 1992
Recorded 25th & 26th April, 1992 at King Records #2 Studio, Tokyo, Japan 

Musicians:
Makoto Kuriya - Piano
James Genus - Bass
Masahiko Osaka - Drums

Tracks:
1. Survival Instinct (4:14)
2. In And Outs (5:40)
3. Harvest Road (5:46)
4. Justice (6:38)
5. Love And Dedications (5:33)
6. Here Comes The Bad Boy (7:27)
7. Moon Dog (6:34)
8. X-Bar Fantasy (8:42) 

All compositions by Makoto Kuriya 

Total Time: 50:40

Credits:
Producer, Notes - Makoto Kuriya
Producer, Executive Producer - Yoichi Nakao
Engineer - Hiroyuki Tsuji
Engineer [Assistant] - Shoji Nishizawa
Mastering - Seiji Kaneko
Art Director - Muneo Hanzawa
Design - Keiko Ogasawara
Photos - Yoshihisa "Rice" Yoneda 

Harvest Road

Dave Kikoski - Persistent Dreams (1991)

Persistent Dreams, which was produced by Walter Becker, jumps between two different genres. While Becker in the liner notes expresses admiration for pianist Dave Kikoski's modern straight-ahead quintet which he had heard a couple of years earlier at the legendary Hollywood jazz club Catalina Bar & Grill, four of the first five selections on this CD are somewhat commercial. Kikoski and his sidemen play well but the material is forgettable. Best on those mostly sleepy tracks are the wordless vocals of Vera Mera during the haunting "Lord of the Vine." Things begin to wake up with David Jensen's fiery tenor on John Coltrane's "Satellite" and Kikoski finally cuts loose on Wayne Shorter's "Toy Tune." The high point is the heated quintet on "Falling in Love with Love," featuring Kikoski, Jensen and trumpeter Randy Brecker. If only the entire CD was at that level. Still, if found at a budget price, this now-obscure CD is worth picking up. ~ by Scott Yanow, AMG. 

Triloka Records, 7191-2, 1992
Recorded 17th & 18th October, 1991 At Clinton Studios, New York 

Musicians:
Dave Kikoski - Piano, Synthesizer (#1,4,5), Arranger
Randy Brecker - Trumpet (#3,8)
Dave Jensen - Tenor Saxophone (#4,8)
Cecelia Tenconi - Flute (#5)
Vadim Zilbershtein - Guitar (#5)
James Genus - Electric Bass (#1,3,5)
Ed Howard - Acoustic Bass (#2,4,6-8)
Ben Perowsky - Drums (#1-3,5)
Billy Hart - Drums (#4,6-8)
Alex Acuña - Percussion (#1,3,5)
Vera Mera - Vocals (#1) 

Tracks:
1. Lord Of The Vine {Dave Kikoski} (5:25)
2. Morning After {Al Kasha, Joel Hirschhorn, John Williams} (8:11)
3. Train Of Thought {Dave Kikoski} (6:23)
4. Satellite {John Coltrane} (6:27)
5. Green Trees {Dave Kikoski} (5:12)
6. Toy Tune {Wayne Shorter} (5:04)
7. Lonely {Dave Kikoski} (6:58)
8. Falling In Love With Love {Richard Rodgers, Lorenz Hart} (7:14)
9. Persistent Dreams {Dave Kikoski} (3:28) 

Total Time: 54:22

Credits:
Producer, Liner Notes - Walter Becker
Executive-Producer - K.D. Kagel, Mitchell Markus, Paul A. Sloman
Engineer, Mixing, Editing [Digital], Assemblage, Mastering - Roger Nichols
Engineer [Assistant] - Jackie Brown
Coordinator - June Popowich
Art Direction - The Duke Design Co.