Home » Jazz Articles » Album Review » Robert Glasper: Mood
Robert Glasper: Mood
ByThe pianist's lighthearted melody "Tipsy" reveals an affection for the music of Kenny Kirkland but more importantly exhibits an excellent compositional gift and an extraordinary stylistic range as he moves from articulate straight-ahead swinging to fluid parallel octave playing to a very personal sort of spacey staccato stride. He segues seamlessly into a rendition of "Alone Together" that begins with a confident reading of the melody and then proceeds to dissect it into fragments yielding material for experimentation.
The title track is another notable original on which the pianist/composer utilizes the voicing of Mike Moreno's guitar and John Ellis' tenor saxophone to create a quiet intensity. Glasper wrote the words and music to "Don't Close Your Eyes," a plaintive plea featuring Bilal's raspy falsetto that unveils a real talent for popular songwriting. Ironically, perhaps the best example of the high level of his creativity comes not from one of his fine originals, but on his arrangement of the Irving Berlin evergreen "Blue Skies," where he makes the old standard completely his own.
Even the 2:15 hip-hop "Interlude" that follows demonstrates a remarkable melodic gift. His "In Passing" is a surprisingly upbeat lament that reveals a virtuoso approach indebted to Keith Jarrett while expressing an optimistic outlook that is an unmistakable aspect of his own music. The concluding "L.N.K. Blues" is a blowing session augmenting the trio with the battling tenor saxophones of Ellis and Marcus Strickland, on which the pianist shows off his hard bop chops, illustrating emphatically he can do it all.
Track Listing
Maiden Voyage; Lil Tipsy; Alone Together; Mood; Don't Close Your Eyes; Blue Skies; Interlude; In Passing; L.N.K Blues.
Personnel
Robert Glasper
pianoRobert Glasper-piano, Bob Hurst-bass, Damion Reid-drums, Mike Moreno-guitar (track 4), John Ellis-tenor saxophone (tracks 4, 9), Marcus Strickland-tenor saxophone (track 9)
Album information
Title: Mood | Year Released: 2003 | Record Label: Blue Moon
Tags
Comments
PREVIOUS / NEXT
Robert Glasper Concerts

Robert Glasper
Blue Note New YorkNew York, NY

Robert Glasper
Blue Note New YorkNew York, NY

Robert Glasper
Blue Note New YorkNew York, NY

Robert Glasper
Blue Note New YorkNew York, NY

Robert Glasper
Judson's LiveOrlando, FL

Robert Glasper
Judson's LiveOrlando, FL

Robert Glasper
Blue Note Los AngelesLos Angeles, CA

Robert Glasper
Blue Note Los AngelesLos Angeles, CA
Support All About Jazz

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.
New York City
Concert Guide | Venue Guide | Local Businesses
| More...
