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James Brandon Lewis / Chad Taylor: Live In Willisau

By Mark Corroto
April 12, 2020
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James Brandon Lewis / Chad Taylor: Live In Willisau

Saxophonist

James Brandon Lewis

saxophone, tenor
b.1983

" data-original-title="" title="">James Brandon Lewis and drummer

" data-original-title="" title="">Chad Taylor's 2017 studio session Radiant Imprints (Musicube/Off, 2018) was hailed by many critics and fans alike as one of the best recordings of 2018. It was indeed a true revelation, yet that recording wasn't the genesis of a major talent. Lewis' inaugural release Divine Travels (Okeh, 2014) accomplished that feat. As for Taylor, he has been on our radar since the 1990s with

Rob Mazurek

trumpet
b.1965

" data-original-title="" title="">Rob Mazurek and the various Chicago Underground ensembles,

Fred Anderson

saxophone
1929 - 2010

" data-original-title="" title="">Fred Anderson,

Marc Ribot

guitar
b.1954

" data-original-title="" title="">Marc Ribot and, of late, Jaime Branch's Fly Or Die. This live date reaches further and, in many ways, surpasses their astonishing initial studio recording.

This 66-minute performance at the 2019 Jazz Festival Willisau kicks off with "Twenty Four" a crafty recalculation of

John Coltrane

saxophone
1926 - 1967

" data-original-title="" title="">John Coltrane's "26-2." The duo doesn't so much cover Trane's 1960 composition as create a vortex of sound and energy with pieces and parts of the original flying off at odd angles. They use the same formula for "Imprints," Coltrane's "Impressions" reimagined. Like their original studio effort, the pair eschew mimicry without dishonoring the original music. "Radiance" the duo's take on "Seraphic Light" from Stellar Regions could be labeled "Stellar Regions 2.0." Taylor isn't quite channeling

Rashied Ali

drums
1935 - 2009

" data-original-title="" title="">Rashied Ali as he is gathering together a legacy from

Elvin Jones

drums
1927 - 2004

" data-original-title="" title="">Elvin Jones to

Billy Higgins

drums
1936 - 2001

" data-original-title="" title="">Billy Higgins and

Hamid Drake

drums
b.1955

" data-original-title="" title="">Hamid Drake.

Duke Ellington

piano
1899 - 1974

" data-original-title="" title="">Duke Ellington's "Come Sunday" opens with Taylor's thumb piano creating a rainforest for Lewis to gently tread.

Dewey Redman

saxophone, tenor
b.1931

" data-original-title="" title="">Dewey Redman and

Ed Blackwell

drums
1929 - 1992

" data-original-title="" title="">Ed Blackwell performed "Willisee" at this same festival in 1980 (Red And Black In Willisau (Black Saint, 1985)). Lewis and Taylor recreate the same spirit and energy, even surprising themselves at the heights they have scaled. The encore, "Under/Over the Rainbow," takes us home with reassuring brushwork and an empty-the-tanks sound that leaves the crowd satisfied.

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Track Listing

Twenty Four; Radiance; Matape; Come Sunday; Imprints; Watakushi No Sekai; With Sorrow Lonnie; Willisee; Under/Over the Rainbow.

Personnel

James Brandon Lewis

saxophone, tenor

Chad Taylor

drums

Album information

Title: Live In Willisau | Year Released: 2020 | Record Label: Intakt Records

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