Home » Jazz Articles » Album Review » Sands Fonnesb?k Riel: Take One

Sands Fonnesb?k Riel: Take One

By Chris Mosey
September 8, 2015
View read count

In October 2014 pianist Christian Sands, a prot��g�� of

Billy Taylor

piano
1921 - 2010

" data-original-title="" title="">Billy Taylor, known mainly for with his work with bassist

" data-original-title="" title="">Christian McBride's trio, played two nights to remember at Copenhagen's legendary jazz club Montmartre. The highlights are captured on this Storyville double album.

Sands plays with (rather than is accompanied by) phenomenal local bassist Thomas Fonnesb?k, nowadays often compared to the legendary Niels-Henning ?rsted Pedersen. On drums and not getting too much of a look-in, solowise: Alex Riel.

Fonnesb?k elevates the role of the bass here to that of front-line instrument. On

Bobby Timmons

piano
1935 - 1974

" data-original-title="" title="">Bobby Timmons' "Moanin,'" which opens Disk Two, he boldly and rhythmically shouts (rather than states) the theme before Sands comes in with a pianistic tour de force as virtuoso as it is soulful.

Christian Brorsen, Jazzhus Montmartre's musical director, said of Sands & Co.'s improvisations: "Time and again you find yourself holding your breath until the trio—like a cat in free fall—twists and turns in the air and lands safely on its feet."

Sands plays only one of his own compositions, the busily lilting "Sand Dune." His primary concern here is an examination of his roots.

He pays tribute to mentor Billy Taylor by dusting off the good doctor's deceptively simple ballad "Lonesome Lover." It's not to be confused with the

Max Roach

drums
1925 - 2007

" data-original-title="" title="">Max Roach/

Abbey Lincoln

vocals
1930 - 2010

" data-original-title="" title="">Abbey Lincoln number of the same name from 1962 with its catchy "Take Me Back Where I Belong" vocal refrain.

There's a version of

Miles Davis

trumpet
1926 - 1991

" data-original-title="" title="">Miles Davis's "So What" from the classic 1959 album Kind of Blue and a quite superb take on

Duke Ellington

piano
1899 - 1974

" data-original-title="" title="">Duke Ellington's "In A Sentimental Mood" which contrives to sound both brand new and, at the same time, faithful to the original, which Ellington penned way back in 1935.

An interesting inclusion is

Mary Lou Williams

piano
1910 - 1981

" data-original-title="" title="">Mary Lou Williams' "Syl-O-Gism," a composition she based on the Greek word syllogism, meaning a logical argument that applies deductive reasoning to arrive at a conclusion based on two or more propositions that are asserted or assumed to be true. All clear?

Easier to understand perhaps: hard bopper Cedar Walton's discreetly subversive "Bolivia."

Take One is chock full of surprising twists and turns and live excitement as the audience waits for the cat to land: a great album.

Learn more about our star rating system

Track Listing

CD1: Stella By Starlight; Lonesome Lover; So What; In A Sentimental Mood; Bolivia. CD2: Moanin��; Body And Soul; Sand Dune; Syl-O-Gism; Someday My Prince Will Come.

Personnel

Sands Fonnesbaek Riel

Christian Sands: piano; Thomas Fonnesb?k: bass; Alex Riel: drums.

Album information

Title: Take One | Year Released: 2015 | Record Label: Storyville Records

PREVIOUS / NEXT

Michael Ricci: A Modern Day Jazz Mes...
< Previous

Stuart McCallum: City
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.