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1.
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TODAY'S NIGHTS (J.Ford) - Listen to Sample |
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2.
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24E (A.Lebo) |
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3.
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LET'S PLAY (L.Willis) - Listen to Sample |
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4.
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EVERYTHING HAPPENS TO ME (M.Dennis,
T.Adair) |
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5.
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OUR DELIGHT (T.Dameron) |
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6.
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TO WISDOM THE PRIZE
(L.Willis) |
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7.
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WAIT (A.Lebo) |
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8.
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I'M GONNA LAUGH YOU OUT
OF MY LIFE (C.Coleman, J.McCarthy) - Listen to Full Song |
Fi:
reviewed by Fred Kaplan
Finesounds: FI's Critics Recommend Great-Sounding
Discs
For the sonic glories of purely acoustic jazz, it's back to Mapleshade,
with Shades Of Brass by the Avi Lebo Double Trombone Quintet.
Lebo hails from Tel Aviv, a classically trained trombonist who,
after hearing a Slide Hampton record, shifted to jazz, moved to
New York, tracked down Hampton himself for lessons, and now features
the master as a sideman on his own debut disc. The other sidemen
aren't chopped liver, either: pianist Larry Willis, bassist Steve
Novosel, and drummer Jimmy Cobb, whose sound and cadences you'll
clearly recognize as the same Cobb who played on Miles Davis' Kind
of Blue. Talk about ride cymbals: nobody rides with more grace,
or sense of time and tune, than Cobb. He shuffles rhythms with supreme
subtlety. On 24E, snap your fingers to the beat and listen
to how many counterbeats Cobb's got going at the same time.
Percussion is something of engineer Sprey's specialty, as well.
I can't think of another CD, except possibly another Mapleshade,
on which so many bushels of air billow forth from a trapset. The
bass (unplugged) sounds naturally woody and plucky. Willis' piano
chords waft richly. And the dual trombones -- well, there they are,
right in front of you. Lebo is quite a discovery. He plays with
astonishing precision, hitting eighth and sixteenth notes without
a smidgen of overhang, yet there's no coldness to his tone. He gets
a burnished-bronze tone out of the 'bone, "like a dark, soulful
French horn," just as the liner says. Hampton has a brasher sound
and, when they mix it up the electricity sparkles (though, on Today's
Nights, their playing is marred by saturation on the tape).
Lovely stuff.
March 1997
Jazz Times:
reviewed by Nancy Ann Lee
Classically trained in his native Israel before
studying in New York with mentor Slide Hampton, trombonist Avi
Lebo performs with Hampton, and his angel, pianist Larry Willis,
who proposed the recording to Mapleshade after hearing the kid
play in N.Y.C. Bassist Steve Novosel and drummer Jimmy Cobb complete
the homogeneous team. Eight eclectic arrangements give abundant
leeway for everyone to resourcefully stretch out. Great artistry,
reminiscent of 1950s Kai & J.J. Quintet. An absorbing listen and
promising debut.
April 1997
Cadence:
reviewed by Eric Saidel
One of the challenges for a young musician, especially
one who wishes to play bop-oriented Jazz, is to find a sound of
his or her own. Avi Lebo has met this challenge head on. Despite
studying and playing with Slide Hampton, Lebo has his own distinctive
sound: his playing is dark, yet sweet, and slow and thick, evoking
for me the image of molasses. As one might expect, Lebo sounds
great on the several ballads included here. He lets us bathe in
the rich warmth of his horn, and he doesn't forget - as do many
players his age - that, especially when he plays a ballad, his
solos need to continue to tell the story of the piece. One ballad
here is particularly worth mention: his rendition of Willis' To
Wisdom The Prize is absolutely fantastic. He plays it slowly
and somberly, setting a mood of sad awareness that he maintains
throughout. I found it quite easy to lose myself in the mood Lebo
and Willis create (they play this as a duet). While nothing else
on the disc measures up to this performance, the remainder is
still well worth a listen; Hampton and Lebo clearly enjoy playing
together, and the rhythm section, smartly led by Willis, are right
on the money. This disc not only includes some genuinely good
music, but there are touches of pure brilliance as well.
May 1997
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