Piano Trios

[jazznut]

I agree RD.
Nothing better than to kick back and put on a good trio recording.

As Boxdoctor will attest, I'm seriously into Stanley Cowell, one of the most unsung of jazz pianists, as he's spent much of his career teaching. Nonetheless, he's managed to release many classics, including some stellar sessions with trumpeter Charles Tolliver. Amongst his trio recordings, I've particularly enjoyed "Sienna" with Ron McClure and Keith Copeland, "Close To You Alone" with Cecil McBee and Ronnie Burrage and especially ECM's "Illusion Suite" (alas, never released on CD as far as I am aware) with Stanley Clarke and Jimmy Hopps.

John Hicks is another favourite, whose "Power Trio" with Cecil McBee and Elvin Jones really sizzles.

Don Pullen always held a special place in my musical heart for his ability to ride the eccentric edge of rhythm even while he soulfully hit the center of a tune's true swing. "Random Thoughts" with James Genus and Lewis Nash as well as "New Beginnings" with Gary Peacock and Tony Williams rank amongst his most challenging and ultimately rewarding recordings.

As for McCoy Tyner, what can I say? I've been privileged to see him live on more than a few occasions, and have never left a concert of his in a less than enthralled state. He is a 'big' man in every sense of the word. For purity of interpretation and pure drive, his "Trident" album with Ron Carter and Elvin Jones is hard to beat.

The late Mary Lou Williams was another artist capable of crossing musical boundaries with ease, as evidenced in her "Free Spirits" issue with Buster Williams and Mickey Roker. Let's face it: Anyone who could play opposite Cecil Taylor on an equal footing had it in Aces!

Finally, just for the heck of it, a non-piano trio recording. Saxophonist David Murray's "The Hill" with Richard Davis and Joe Chambers remains, more than a decade and a half after its release, one of the seminal trio sessions of all time. This is not an 'easy-listening' album by any stretch of the imagination. It leads one through thoughts and emotions of a deeply personal nature, much like Coltrane would, and yet has a lighter, more humourous side to it as well. I'll never get to the bottom of this one!