1. From Rio To Havana
2. For M.E.
3. The View From Here
4. Sirocco
5. Luxor
6. Une Nuit au S‚n‚gal
7. The Way Home
8. The Promise
9. Mistral
10. Summer Gone
11. Rote de La Buissonne
Kyle Eastwood - Double bass, electric bass
Andrew McCormack - Piano, electric piano
Graeme Blevins - Tenor sax, soprano sax
Quentin Collins - Trumpet, flugelhorn
Martyn Kaine - Drums
When Kyle Eastwood first appeared on the jazz scene, it did him no harm that he is the eldest son of film star Clint Eastwood, as the connection singled him out when journalists were writing about him. In fact Clint was a long-term jazz fan and he often took Kyle to the Monterey Jazz Festival. Clint was also the producer and director of the film Bird about Charlie Parker, so Kyle grew up with jazz all around him.
Kyle is portrayed on the front cover of this CD holding a string bass, but it sounds as if he is playing bass guitar on many tracks of the album. This is an asset in some ways, as it allows us to hear his bass solos more clearly. His solo on For M. E. (dedicated to his mother) is clear and inventive. And on The Promise, his bass sounds almost like a guitar.
The CD was recorded at La Buissonne, a studio in France. And Kyle is joined by musicians from Britain. Eastwood says 'We've been playing together for a while now, developing a real band chemistry. We ended up writing a lot of these new tunes together either at rehearsals or out on the road during last year's tour around Europe. Sometimes I would come up with a couple of ideas or Andrew mighty bring something in. Then everybody would just add on to it after that'.
The way that Kyle describes the music being put together probably explains why few of the tunes are very memorable. You can imagine someone in the studio stating a riff, over which the others would improvise a tune. This means that many tracks are based on repetitive ostinatos which not only become tedious but which also hinder the development of satisfying melodies.
Nonetheless the music is listenable, with particularly fine solos from trumpeter Quentin Collins (mis-named on the record sleeve) and pianist Andrew McCormack. Drummer Martyn Kaine provides the right fills and accents to animate the music. This album is pleasant and the musicians play with professional fluency, but I can't say that there is anything particularly outstanding about the CD.
Tony Augarde
www.augardebooks.co.uk
CD Reviews
Jazz Village 570020
