Home » Jazz Articles » Album Review » Camilla George Quartet: Isang

Camilla George Quartet: Isang

By Roger Farbey
December 24, 2016
View read count

Isang is the long overdue debut album for alto saxophonist Camilla George, a graduate of London's renowned Trinity College of Music. George has worked with several leading bands including Tomorrow's Warriors, Nu Civilisation Orchestra and Jazz Jamaica. She's led her own quartet since 2014 and her love of African and Western music is influenced by her country of birth, Nigeria. The album's title Isang (pronounced E-S-A-N-G) is an old Efik/Ibibio word that means voyage and symbolises George's own musical journey.

The album kicks off with the vibrantly modal, Coltrane-esque "Mami Wata" and evident from the start is George's characteristic pure alto tone, close to a clarinet in timbre. Equally enthralling is Sarah Tandy on stretchy

McCoy Tyner

piano
1938 - 2020

" data-original-title="" title="">McCoy Tyner-like chords. Whether Daniel Casimir and Femi Koleoso may be the next

Jimmy Garrison

bass, acoustic
1934 - 1976

" data-original-title="" title="">Jimmy Garrison and

Elvin Jones

drums
1927 - 2004

" data-original-title="" title="">Elvin Jones is debatable, but they are very effective sidemen and produce exactly the right, tight sound for this group. "Lunacity" is a bouncy calypso with George cannily inserting some apt quotes such as "Don't Stop The Carnival" and "Salt Peanuts."

The affecting slow blues of "Song For Reds" is followed by the title track, another calypso-influenced tune to which George's soloing spars with the subtly laid- back rhythm section. Zara McFarlane contributes alluring scat vocals to

Kenny Garrett

saxophone, alto
b.1960

" data-original-title="" title="">Kenny Garrett's "Ms Baja," one of only two tracks on the album not composed by George. "Dreams Of Eket" and the standard "The Night Has A Thousand Eyes" are both seductively relaxed ballads but by sharp contrast "Mami Wata Returns / Usoro" opens with an ostinato bass line and a punchy percussive rhythm all contributing to an infectious groove.

Camilla George's Quartet has produced an extremely accessible yet intellectually satisfying album executed with precision and aplomb. Isang bodes very well indeed for George's next album.

Learn more about our star rating system

Track Listing

Mami Wata; Lunacity; Song For Reds; Isang; MsBaja; Dreams Of Eket; The Night Has A Thousand Eyes; Mami Wata Returns / Usoro.

Personnel

Camilla George

saxophone

Camilla George: alto saxophone; Sarah Tandy: piano; Daniel Casimir: bass; Femi Koleoso: drums. Plus Zara McFarlane: vocals on Ms Baja.

Album information

Title: Isang | Year Released: 2016 | Record Label: Ubuntu Music

PREVIOUS / NEXT

Anthology - Bigger Than Life
< Previous

Penang Island Jazz Festival 2016
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.