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John Hébert: Sounds Of Love

By Mark Corroto
February 19, 2022
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In sport, they talk about 'horses for courses,' to describe a parcour suited for particular athletes. That same language can be used to decide an ensemble's lineup for a particular category of music. Bassist and bandleader

John Hébert

bass

" data-original-title="" title="">John Hébert made careful choices to create the quintet to perform music in the spirit of

Charles Mingus

bass, acoustic
1922 - 1979

" data-original-title="" title="">Charles Mingus. In the early 1960s, Mingus toured with saxophonist

Eric Dolphy

woodwinds
1928 - 1964

" data-original-title="" title="">Eric Dolphy, trumpeter

Johnny Coles

trumpet
1926 - 1997

" data-original-title="" title="">Johnny Coles, pianist

Jaki Byard

piano
1922 - 1999

" data-original-title="" title="">Jaki Byard, and drummer

Dannie Richmond

drums
1935 - 1988

" data-original-title="" title="">Dannie Richmond. For Hébert's touring ensemble from 2011 to 2013, he convened a cast of somewhat disparate, yet correlative players.

The magic of Sounds Of Love is Hébert's amalgam. He draws on his long-standing collaboration with pianist

Fred Hersch

piano
b.1955

" data-original-title="" title="">Fred Hersch, plus drummer

Ches Smith

drums

" data-original-title="" title="">Ches Smith and cornetist

Taylor Ho Bynum

cornet
b.1975

" data-original-title="" title="">Taylor Ho Bynum both of whom he plays with in guitarist

Mary Halvorson

guitar

" data-original-title="" title="">Mary Halvorson's various ensembles. The finishing touch was adding

Tim Berne

saxophone, alto
b.1954

" data-original-title="" title="">Tim Berne who tailors his saxophone voice most agreeably to both John Hébert's and Mingus' vision.

The music includes two covers, the luscious "Duke Ellington's Sounds of Love" which opens with Hébert's expressive bass and the raucous "Remember Rockefeller at Attica" with its booming swing and dark humor. Hébert's arrangements and choice of players eschew imitations, yet honor Mingus' spirit. "Love What" acknowledges Mingus' "What Love," which itself was based on Cole Porter's "What Is This Thing Called Love?" Like taffy, the music is pulled and folded together by way of Berne's mad science solo and Hersch's keyboard dash, creating a transmuted amalgam. The same is true of "Frivolocity," which is modeled after "Sue's Changes." The simple becomes complex, and the complex simple.

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Track Listing

Constrictor; The Blank-Faced Man; Duke Ellington’s Sounds of Love; Love What?; Remember Rockefeller at Attica; Frivolocity.

Personnel

John Hébert

bass

Taylor Ho Bynum

cornet

Tim Berne

saxophone, alto

Fred Hersch

piano

Ches Smith

drums

Album information

Title: Sounds Of Love | Year Released: 2022 | Record Label: Sunnyside Records

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