Hindsight (CamJazz)
Enrico Pieranunzi / Marc Johnson / Joey Baron
Released May 23, 2024
DownBeat Five-Star Review
YouTube:
https://music.youtube.com/playlist?list=OLAK5uy_nwIi1hwyYDfA16hRXVAFPz3LCFLE4dvTg
Spotify:
About:
If it ever seems that the art of the jazz piano trio has gone as far as anyone can reasonably take it –this given the legacy of great artists like Art Tatum, Bill Evans, Cecil Taylor, Ahmad Jamal and Keith Jarrett –the new recording by Italian master Enrico Pieranunzi is a triumphant assertion of the durability and creative vitality of the form. Working with two of the most musical players in the business, bassist Marc Johnson and drummer Joey Baron, Pieranunzi largely avoids the Broadway songbook in favour of original compositions coloured by his deep love and understanding of jazz but also his knowledge of classical and Baroque form, folk and other popular music.As a title, Hindsight may imply a looking back, but Pieranunzi recognises that that is theonly way to move the music forward. The themes here may seem both naggingly familiar and utterly fresh. It’s music of great generosity and openness, not a self-consciously magisterial statement by a great artist content to rest on his own reputation, buta contract of promise with the audience that jazz is far from running out of new things to say and new feelings to express
Brian Morton
Track Listing:
1. Je ne sais quoi 06:54
2. Everything I Love 05:29
3. B.Y.O.H. 07:24
4. Don’t Forget The Poet 09:17
5. Hindsight 07:28
6. Molto Ancora 05:55
7. Castle Of Solitude 05:22
8. The Surprise Answer 06:00
Personnel:
Enrico Pieranunzi: piano
Marc Johnson: bass
Joey Baron: drums
Producer: Ermanno Basso
Recorded live on 13 December 2019 at Auditorium de La Seine Musicale, Boulogne-Billancourt
Live executive producer: François Lacharme
Recording and mixing engineer: Stefano Amerio
Mastered by Danilo Rossi
Photos: Elisa Caldana
Review:
Pianist Enrico Pieranunzi is considered a star veteran within the Italian jazz community. His vast knowledge of both the European and American jazz canons has taken him across the globe and presented him with opportunities to collaborate with such luminaries as Chet Baker, Lee Konitz, Paul Motian and Charlie Haden. His lush harmonies and lyrical improvisational technique evoke Oscar Peterson and Bill Evans, the latter whom Pieranunzi cites as a direct influence. In his 50-plus-year recording career and with more than 70 albums to his name, he always manages to reinvigorate his music for listeners. This is the case with Hindsight, a live recording made in Boulogne-Billancourt (France). Replete with some of his most popular compositions, Hindsight is a crisp mix of classical melodies, folk and modern post-bop tunes. Pieranunzi convened his longtime trio with bassist Marc Johnson and drummer Joey Baron, both of whom have been involved with him in a number of studio and live sessions, including 2008’s Yellow & Blue Suites and 2009’s Dream Dance. Together, the band waltzes through the swinging “Everything I Love” and the title track “Hindsight,” where Pieranunzi’s fingers reach critical mass in terms of delivery and approach to the tune. “Castle Of Solitude” is a more Latintinged tune and showcases Pieranunzi’s global appeal as an artist. Overall, Hindsight revives some of Pieranunzi’s most beloved compositions, which, by telling from the applause by the audience, shows his arrangements are just as hot now as they were when they were first recorded.
Veronica Johnson (DownBeat)
