Tag: Night Night

Review by George W. Harris :: Jazz Weekly

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Sophisticated Lady Jazz Quartet CD CoverReview by George W. Harris in Jazz Weekly

If you miss the sounds of vintage 50s Miles Davis recordings, here’s a treat for you. The team of JJ Kirkpatrick/tp-fh, Misha Adair Bigos/p, Gary Wicks/b and Andrew Boyle/dr mix standards and originals that have the feel of a Miles Davis quartet session just before Coltrane blew into town. Kirkpatrick’s got a nice clean and warm sound, displayed well on “I’m Old Fashioned,” but he can also make it deliver some emotion as he has it cry on Bigos’ “Ropes of Sand” and sigh on Ellington’s “Sophisticated Lady.” Bigos himself has soft hands on “Night Night” and drives like a trucker on his chiming “Finale.” The rhythm team can go languid and melancholy during “Weightless” and can purr like a kitten on a rich take of Ellington’s “Isfahan.” No changed worlds here, but definitely a friendlier one.

by  •  Review  in Jazz Weekly

Bill Milkowski The Absolute Sound :: Sophisticated Lady Review

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Bill Milkowski Review The Absolute Sound – Sophisticated Lady Review

Sophisticated Lady Jazz Quartet Album CoverSonics: 5 out of 5!

Sophisticated Lady Jazz Quartet.
Yarlung.

This band of young jazz musicians follows in the classy-cool tradition of Shorty Rogers & His Giants, a tasteful swinging late 50s-early 60s outfit led by a principal creator of the West Coast sound. Recorded in Cammilleri Hall in LA, this debut album sounds astoundingly good. Recorded live, it gives one the feeling of having a ringside seat at an intimate jazz club. It opens with a politely swinging rendition of Jerome Kern’s “I’m Old Fashioned” that’s underscored by drummer Andrew James Boyle’s deft brushwork at the intro. Every nuance of JJ Kirkpatrick’s bristling trumpet solo here can be readily felt while Boyle’s switch to sticks on the ride cymbal is like sparklers being set off in the dark. Boyle’s gentle ballad “Gone” is a lyrical highlight while the Ellington-Strayhorn song “Isfahan” is another showcase for Kirkpatrick’s bold tones and sly improvisations. Pianist Misha Bigos contributes the swinging “Finale” and delivers a dramatic solo piano piece, “Fields of Kurdistan,” while bassist Gary Wicks contributes the darkly beautiful “Night Night” and the somber “Weightless.” Kirkpatrick also turns in some bright trumpet work on a faithful rendition of Duke’s timeless “Sophisticated Lady.” A stellar first outing by a group that shows great promise. “

— Bill Milkowski
The Absolute Sound, December 2014