Ben Davis/Fred Thomas/Zac Gvirtzman: Monk Spent Youth

Rating: ★★★

Record and Artist Details

Musicians:

Zac Gvirtzman (p, bcl, org, toy-p)
Fred Thomas (d, b, prepared p)
Ben Davis (clo)

Label:

F-IRE

October/2019

Media Format:

CD

Catalogue Number:

F-IRECD100

RecordDate:

July 2016

Davis and Thomas are reliable cornerstones of the London scene, while the lesser-known pianist and producer Gvirtzman (aka Zac Gvi) is, among other things, a composer and sound designer for alternative theatre and film. But, as demonstrated in his 2013 duo with Thomas (Living Standards, F-IRECD70), he clearly has a jazz pedigree. The present offering has 16 shortish tracks mostly based directly on hallowed Monk repertoire but addressed in relatively ‘free’ approaches to the acoustic trio, with fairly brief ‘special effects’ such as the opening ‘Bubu's Birthday’ on unaccompanied toy piano. Tracks such as Off Minor’, with Davis contributing a walking line on cello and then doubling the melody on the out-chorus, are relatively straightahead, which is also true of ‘Coming On The Hudson’ and the out-of-tempo ‘Ugly Beauty I’, where Gvirtzman plays the lead on bass clarinet. One track with Zac on solo church organ is a change of pace, but the meat is the adventurous variety of the piano trio interpretations. Obviously, a well spent youth went into the making of this tradition-oriented, but variously stimulating, music.

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