Home » Jazz Articles » Album Review » Louis Hayes: Crisis

Louis Hayes: Crisis

By Jack Bowers
December 18, 2021
View read count

Louis Hayes

drums
b.1937

" data-original-title="" title="">Louis Hayes—who has been a force in jazz drumming for more than sixty years, anchoring legendary groups led by

Horace Silver

piano
1928 - 2014

" data-original-title="" title="">Horace Silver,

Cannonball Adderley

saxophone
1928 - 1975

" data-original-title="" title="">Cannonball Adderley,

Oscar Peterson

piano
1925 - 2007

" data-original-title="" title="">Oscar Peterson,

John Coltrane

saxophone
1926 - 1967

" data-original-title="" title="">John Coltrane and

" data-original-title="" title="">Sonny Rollins, among others—has assembled a quintet of New York City's finest for Crisis, wherein he pays musical tribute to some of his jazz colleagues, past and present, including

Freddie Hubbard

trumpet
1938 - 2008

" data-original-title="" title="">Freddie Hubbard,

Joe Farrell

saxophone
1937 - 1986

" data-original-title="" title="">Joe Farrell,

Lee Morgan

trumpet
1938 - 1972

" data-original-title="" title="">Lee Morgan,

Bobby Hutcherson

vibraphone
1941 - 2016

" data-original-title="" title="">Bobby Hutcherson and two members of his working unit, vibraphonist

Steve Nelson

vibraphone
b.1954

" data-original-title="" title="">Steve Nelson and bassist

Dezron Douglas

bass

" data-original-title="" title="">Dezron Douglas.

The studio date opens with Farrell's Middle Eastern-leaning cooker, "Arab Arab," which shows, clearly and decisively, that Hayes has not yielded any leverage to Father Time and has chosen his teammates with care; Hayes, Douglas and pianist

David Hazeltine

piano
b.1958

" data-original-title="" title="">David Hazeltine comprise a stalwart rhythm section, and there are nimble solos by Nelson, Hazeltine and tenor saxophonist

Abraham Burton

saxophone, alto
b.1971

" data-original-title="" title="">Abraham Burton. Hutcherson's genial "Roses Poses" is next, offering more of the same at a slightly slower tempo, before vocalist

Camille Thurman

saxophone
b.1986

" data-original-title="" title="">Camille Thurman joins the group for a tender reading of "I'm Afraid the Masquerade Is Over" (she returns on the standard "Where Are You?"). Perhaps in deference to

Frank Sinatra

vocals
1915 - 1998

" data-original-title="" title="">Frank Sinatra's heart-rending version of "Where Are You?," the lament is taken at an accelerated tempo that does it no favors (scatting gaily when lamenting a lost and perhaps irretrievable love seems rather inappropriate). Morgan's less-than-dreamlike "Desert Moonlight" precedes that number, while Hayes' lone original, the good-natured "Creeping Crud" (arranged by

Anthony Wonsey

piano

" data-original-title="" title="">Anthony Wonsey) follows.

Nelson wrote the ethereal "Alien Visitation," Hubbard the album's assertive title theme, Douglas the invigorating "Oxygen." The group closes with a high-energy version of "It's Only a Paper Moon," a Harold Arlen/Yip Harburg evergreen popularized in the '40s by Nat King Cole and

Ella Fitzgerald

vocals
1917 - 1996

" data-original-title="" title="">Ella Fitzgerald. In sum, a very good session in which everyone has more than one chance to assume a leading role, and no-one comes up short, while Hayes shows there is more to longevity than merely hanging around.

Learn more about our star rating system

Track Listing

Arab Arab; I'm Afraid the Masquerade Is Over; Desert Moonlight; Where Are You?; Creeping Crud; Alien Visitation; Crisis; Oxygen; It's Only a Paper Moon

Personnel

Louis Hayes

drums

Abraham Burton

saxophone, alto

Steve Nelson

vibraphone

David Hazeltine

piano

Dezron Douglas

bass

Camille Thurman

saxophone

Album information

Title: Crisis | Year Released: 2021 | Record Label: Savant Records

PREVIOUS / NEXT

Classical Music 2021
< Previous

Feel The Love
Next >

Support All About Jazz

All About Jazz has been a pillar of jazz since 1995, championing it as an art form and, more importantly, supporting the musicians who make it. Our enduring commitment has made "AAJ" one of the most culturally important websites of its kind, read by hundreds of thousands of fans, musicians and industry figures every month.

Go Ad Free!

To maintain our platform while developing new means to foster jazz discovery and connectivity, we need your help. You can become a sustaining member for as little as $20 and in return, we'll immediately hide those pesky ads plus provide access to future articles for a full year. This winning combination vastly improves your AAJ experience and allow us to vigorously build on the pioneering work we first started in 1995. So enjoy an ad-free AAJ experience and help us remain a positive beacon for jazz by making a donation today.