Dynamic modern jazz that touches peers and aficionados alike

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JAZZ: Modern Creative Jazz, JAZZ: Jazz quartet

Show all album songs: With You In Mind Songs


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Liner Notes by Francis Davis of the Village Voice, NYC:
Small wonder that progress is a cherished concept in jazz, given the musicâs evolution from folk expression to postmoderism in less than a century. But individual progressâthe greater technical command and deeper emotional resonance a player hopefully gains from recording to recording and gig to gigâhas always been part of the concept as well.
Two Colors, Russ Nolanâs first album as a leader, was an impressive debut; With You in Mind is a flying leap. Inasmuch as it finds the saxophonist seamlessly integrating himself into a longstanding trio, the new album reminds me of some of those classic Prestiges and Blue Notes of the 1950s and â60s, on which freelance hornmen availed themselves of Miles Davisâs rhythm sections. A major source of pleasure on With You in Mind is Nolanâs heady rapport with Kenny Werner, Ari Hoenig, and Johannes Weidenmuellerâperhaps best exemplified by the four-way interaction on âDisheveled Waltz,â where such maters as tempo and meter are subject to passing whim.
This rapport shouldnât be surprising. Nolan says that a lesson he took from Werner following their intial meeting in Chicago in 2001 âchanged the course of my life. Not only by learning his compositional approach, but by confirming my suspicions that I needed to move to New York to absorb the creative spirit there. Or have it absorb me.â
A cardinal rule of that compositional approach is avoiding overfamiliar harmonic changesâa lesson Nolan took to heart, to judge from numbers like âStand Clear of the Closing Doors,â with its mock-frenzy, and the opening âKilsonâs Groove,â inspired by drummer Billy Kilsonâs âfunky, hiphop grooves with the Dave Holland Quintetâ and in fourâbut a tricky four âwith off-beat kicks in the B section.â The fresh take on âNaimaâ is the albumâs only standard: âTrane is still my Number One influence, but I find reinterpreting him from a compositional standpoint more vibrant than regurgitating his changes or patterns.â But thereâs a glimpse of Monk at his most humorous and diatonic on âDiatoniousââânot referring to any of his compositions in particular, just the vibe.â And though With You in Mind abounds with examples of the high-register facility that sets Nolan apart from most other contemporary saxophonistsâhe never uses falsetto for shock effect, but tosses off complete phrases up thereâthe track to turn to for immediate confirmation is âTales from the Head.â
Nolan has had an unusual career trajectory for a musician, gaining a foothold in the business world before making a name for himself in jazz. Heâs certainly taking care of business here.
Francis Davis
Francis Davis is a columnist for the Village Voice and the author of seven books, including Like Young and Jazz and Its Discontents.