Harrell

Since the 70s, trumpeter Tom Harrell has branded a prolific stature within the annals of modern jazz as an artisan who possesses an enviable technique marked by his exquisite phrasings, silky tone and fluid progressions. Even during pieces constructed on gutsy or penetrating ensemble work, Harrell has an uncanny way of dishing out ferocious licks with heartfelt overtones and a penchant for eloquently rebuilding themes and regenerating numerous slants on a given melody. Here, the trumpeter lines up with celebrated and eternally versatile bandleader, saxophonist Mark Turner (Kurt Rosenwinkel, OAM Trio).

Following up his 2007 effort Light On (HighNote), trumpeter Tom Harrell continues to document his original compositional voice and uncommonly tight working band with Prana Dance. Again there's the youthful, hungry lineup of tenor saxophonist Wayne Escoffery, pianist Danny Grissett and drummer Johnathan Blake, with long-serving Harrell stalwart Ugonna Okegwo digging in on bass. The material is all original, all new, teeming with harmonic secrets and an uncanny marriage of the simple and complex, not to mention ample possibilities for elaboration in the live setting—as the band proved during a galvanizing Thursday night set at New York's Village Vanguard in April, 2009.

Recorded in 1989 and re-released on Original Jazz Classics in 2003, Sail Away is a fine outing by trumpeter Tom Harrell. He's joined by pianist James Williams, bassist Ray Drummond, and drummer Adam Nussbaum. A handful of guests – flutist Cheryl Pyle, guitarist John Abercrombie, tenor Joe Lovano, and soprano Dave Liebman – fill out the arrangements on ten instrumentals (two are bonus cuts from Visions). Together, Harrell and company add a contemporary spin to mainstream jazz. The ten-minute track "Dream in June" takes a number of adventurous flights of fancy without ever losing track of its base. Both Harrell and Abercrombie's solos build complex, forceful ideas against a backdrop of Nussbaum's powerful drumming, creating a dense sound that belies predictability.

Colors of a Dream is the sixth HighNote Records album by trumpeter-composer Tom Harrell, featuring two basses played by Ugonna Okegwo and Esperanza Spalding, with the latter doubling on vocal, Jaleel Shaw on alto saxophone, Wayne Escoffery on tenor saxophone, and Johnathan Blake on drums. According to JazzTimes, this album deviates from Harrell's previous works. The use of piano is absent, and the three horns often play in block-chord formation. There are hints of Latin jazz, R&B and indie-rock. According to the review, "Colors of a Dream may deviate, but it never disappoints."

Tom Harrell - The Art Of Rhythm (1998) {RCA Victor 09026-68924-2 rec 1997}
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© 1998 RCA Victor / BMG | 09026-68924-2
Jazz / Post Bop / Straight-Ahead Jazz / Trumpet

Best known as a superior and advanced cool-toned trumpeter, Tom Harrell shows throughout this consistently brilliant set that he has also developed into an excellent composer and a particularly talented arranger. All ten songs and arrangements are his, and the music both swings and is quite original. Harrell doubles on flügelhorn and utilizes a wide variety of interesting musicians, including clarinetist Greg Tardy (who plays beautifully on the opening "Petals Danse"), acoustic guitarist Romero Lumbambo (heard on the more Brazilian-oriented numbers), the great free bop tenor Dewey Redman, pianist Danilo Perez, electric guitarist Mike Stern, tenorman David Sanchez, and several strings (including Regina Carter) among others.