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Josh Arcoleo: Josh Arcoleo: Beginnings
ByColeman Hawkins
saxophone, tenor1904 - 1969

Lester Young
saxophone1909 - 1959
Although Britain's Josh Arcoleo may or may not see it quite like this himselfand he probably does not, being disarmingly modest of mienthe 23-year old is the new fast-draw in town. Beginnings, Arcoleo's debut album, reveals a precociously mature player, who, if he has not yet completely grown out of his influences, already possesses an individual and compelling voice.
Arcoleo names

Sonny Rollins
saxophoneb.1930

Joe Henderson
saxophone1937 - 2001

James Brown
vocals1933 - 2006

Pee Wee Ellis
arrangerb.1941

Pharoah Sanders
saxophone, tenor1940 - 2022

Alice Coltrane
piano1937 - 2007
Sound good so far? It gets better. Arcoleo writes characterful, melodically strong tunes (all eight here are originals), and he has a great trio of young lions behind him: Loop and F-IRE collectives luminary, pianist

Ivo Neame
piano
Calum Gourlay
bass
James Maddren
drums
Kit Downes
keyboardsb.1986
Arcoleo's command of multiphonics is among the chief pleasures of Beginnings and, above all, of the title track. On this, he opens with a passage so richly layered that you may wonder, for a moment, whether a little overdubbing has been sneaked in. Closer listening says not. Later, his solo employs similar effects and sustains them over tricky to control, long-held tones. The sound is gorgeous; rough but pleasing to the ear. Two ballads are equally memorable. "Glade" is soft and sunlit; "Phoenix" much the same until Maddren takes it out, midway, for a vigorous shakedown.
Britain is currently so ill-served by its politicians that it is unusual to be able to credit them with getting anything right. But a handful got it right in 2011 when Arcoleo won a Yamaha Parliamentary Jazz Scholarship. More importantly, the same year, he won the

Kenny Wheeler
flugelhorn1930 - 2014

Evan Parker
saxophone, sopranob.1944
Many debut albums, however promising, have playing times that outstay their welcome. (Has a debutante ever actually released a double album? Or do they sometimes just sound like that?). Arcoleo's maturityor perhaps that of executive producer Stapletonhas constrained Beginnings to just under 47 minutes. The music is so satisfying that it could have held the attention for far longer. Fortunately, we are likely to hear a lot more from Arcoleo.
Tracks: Dean Road; Nomad's Land; Glade; Intro to Beginnings; Beginnings; Harbinger; Phoenix; Kite Flight.
Personnel: Josh Arcoleo: tenor saxophone; Ivo Neame: piano; Calum Gourlay: double bass; James Maddren: drums. ">
Personnel
Josh Arcoleo
saxophoneAlbum information
Title: Josh Arcoleo: Beginnings | Year Released: 2012
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