1. Casadias (P.Odorici)[6:55]; 2. For Someone So Beautiful (Willie Jones III)[3:19]; 3. Over the Rainbow (H.Arlen & Y.Harburg)[6:15]; 4. Tin Tin Deo
(W.Fuller & L.Gonzales)[8:21]; 5. My One and Only Love (R.Mellin & G.Wood)[7:52]; 6. Native Son (D.Williams)[6:13]; 7. Willie’s Groove (C.Walton)
[5:29]; 8. If I Should Lose You (R.Rainger & L.Robin)[6:47]
Piero Odorici (tenor saxophone), Cedar Walton (piano), David Williams (bass), Willie Jones III (drums)
rec. at Tedesco Studios, Paramus, NJ, USA on May 11, 2011. Engineer: Tom Tedesco
SCD2115 [51:11]
Some of the great things about jazz are the levels of generosity and inclusivity
practised by musicians and this disc is a good example. Cedar Walton
is one of the greatest exponents of jazz piano and his trio have recorded
many discs. Cedar himself, now aged 78, has played with the likes
of Donald Byrd, Sonny Criss, John Coltrane, JJ Johnson and Wayne Shorter,
and was a member of Art Blakey’s Jazz Messengers in the early 1960s.
Cedar was introduced to Italian tenor saxophonist Piero Odorici in
the early 1980s and has played with him in Europe on every European
tour since then. It was his idea to make a disc with Piero and his
trio and once the Savant Records Inc. gave the go ahead the musicians
decided to split the tunes into 4 standards and one each by each musician
and there we have it. First off is a Piero Odorici composition Casadias
a latin inspired tune and one you think you’ve heard before but couldn’t
have. Cedar introduces the tune accompanied by bass and drums before
Piero enters and we witness for the first time his singing line and
gutsy soulful sound that serves the tune so well before Cedar takes
the tune back for some great out of tempo piano which is my favourite
style and this number finishes with all members of the quartet giving
it their all – great stuff! For Someone So Beautiful by drummer
Willie Jones III is a lovely gentle laid back ballad which has Piero
weaving a dialogue with the others that is as beautiful as the “someone”
in the title. Over the Rainbow must be one of the most covered
songs in all music and I often revolt against them because they rarely
do the original any service in my opinion messing about with the tempo
as they do. However, that’s the case when it’s sung, whereas in this
example the fact that it’s an instrumental makes all the difference
and what results is a fine achievement by all concerned. Tin Tin
Deo, a really great jazz standard is treated to a nice upbeat
version with Odorici dominating the opening, floating over the trio
before leaving Cedar to give a neat solo with accompaniment from Jones
before he gets his spot for some real quality drumming then handing
back to Odorici for the finish. My One and Only Love is another
beautiful ballad which allows our Italian guest to show his skill
in using his horn to sing the melody with Cedar and David Williams
each giving very satisfying solos. It’s a Williams original next and
Native Son shows his compositional abilities with a nice
up-tempo tune with Caribbean overtones with a nod to Gershwin along
the way and Williams providing a solid background to the others which
includes some brilliant stick work from Mr Jones III and with Piero
carrying the main melody. Cedar Walton’s contribution comes next with
Willie’s Groove that has Odorici and the man himself alternating
as chief tune holder but with David Williams giving a nice walking
bass spot. The final offering is If I Should Lose You which
receives a more up-tempo treatment than normally heard with each band
member sharing the honours in delivering a fine ending to this enjoyable
and happy sounding showcase for a talented Italian sax player who,
it is hoped, will as a result of this exposure, get the recognition
he clearly richly deserves.
Steve Arloff
CD Reviews
Savant SCD2115
