Gerry Hemingway Quartet at Yoshi's Monday, Oct.27

[David Gitin]

Gerry Hemingway (drums), Ellery Eskelin (tenor), Herb Robertson (trumpet), Mark Helias (bass).

[jazzfiend]

Sounds great, David! Will try to make it, can always tape Monday night football. Thanks for the reminder.

[RainyDay]

Maybe a hang at Yoshi's? One can only hope. JF: Hope you can make it.

[Mike Schwartz]

I'm more than likely there... for the 2nd set

[RainyDay]

Mike: We can stop and exchange hellos maybe between sets?

[Mike Schwartz]

RD,
In a perfect world, that'll be happening!

I'm attempting the rare Santa Cruz/Oakland double-header that evening.

7PM Dave Holland Quintet at Kuumbwa and the 10PM Hemingway at JLSquare!!!!

[RainyDay]

Up.

[Frisco]

Sounds like a nice new twist to the quartet, with Herb on trumpet and Helias on bass. I just saw Herb in Ann Arbor a few weeks ago. What a creative artist he is! And never gets a mention among the greats.

[Mike Schwartz]

I'm a tired boy this morning, but a very happy having made the 'double-header' of Dave Holland 7PM set in Santa Cruz followed by the Hemmingway 4tet in Oaktown!

I was the messenger service for Robin Eubanks, who asked that I say hello for him to Helias and Ellery...mission accomplished!

How wonderful to see this stellar group, all 4 for the first time as far as I can recall, all having been admired for quite a while on various recordings.

2nd set opens with a piece dedicated to the late Don Cherry which has a swingin' bounce to it and solo space to spare for Herb Robertson, then Eskellin, both superb.

We'll get to Ellery in a second, Robertson's trumpet nothing short of amazing.
What I love about him, and quite frankly about all the members of his band, is that it becomes readily evident that they can play with great authenticity, skill, and passion, music that has a sound closely associated with what would be considered 'the mainstream' and at the same time have this enormous well full of innovation in sound, and in technique, and in creativity that goes so far beyond 'the norm' as to be spellbinding at times, and is really all connected when it's all said and done.
Robertson goes in an instant from playing the most wonderful open trumpet sounds, to a full arsenal of mutes and creative devises way off the usual trumpet trail, all done with complete mastery.

Ellery played with such great passion, and he as well demonstrating the widest possible variety and fantastic musicianship. Two moments that stood out was the tune where he displayed this amazing range of content inluding what must have been some of that old Baltimore grease.
The other was the piece where Ellery for a prolonged period put this thin stream of air through his tenor where we mostly heard air and the sound of him fingering the horn. Then as he modulated his breathing somehow, the pattern continued with the addition of what seemed like he was allowing a couple of well conceived notes to jump out, so to speak.Great stuff!

It is often in music that falls into what might be called 'free' there is rarely any mistaking that when the sounds that are produced by musicians if this calibre, magnifies that they come from countless hours of practice and private experimentation in order to produce what we hear in the moment.

What I have to say about Hemmingway is that the gray hair doesn't fool me at all. He's still a kid who loves to 'mess around' on a drum kit;-) He's always busy picking up another implement to hit, scrape, and coerce yet another interesting sound out of a cymbal or a drum. And here's another guy who can lay down some beats, or flat out swing when the situation calls for it.

This is going to sound the same, but to desribe Helias would be like coming up with similar praise that the others have received. It is right in your face that this guy can MANIPULATE that bass with complete mastery! Whether it's a groove or some inspired invention, Helias is a tall tree in the bass players world, indeed.

Nice to have a short visit with Rainy towards the end of the intermission. and to sit in with Don & David to hear the band. Ellery wouldn't kiss my hand like he did Rainy's, but somehow I was able to get over it;-))

Ellery especially kind to visit with us and other admires under the presuure to pack up and clear the stage...told us he's regularly meeting JCers in his travels.

[RainyDay]

Things have been a little hectic with me but I wanted to say how much I enjoyed Gerry Hemingway's band last night. Ellery was great, they all were. Very out but still very rooted in the blues. Very good stuff. I really enjoyed my chatfest with David and it was good to meet Jazzfiend (dononjazz) and it's always a pleasure to see Mike. S. Had a chance to meet Ellery who is tres charming. More later.

[Paul B]

You can't go wrong with any of these guys....And Ellery is in a class by himself. Not only a helluva a player, but a nice guy. Hope to see this band in NY sometime soon.

Bye-ya.

[Dennis Gonzalez]

Originally posted by David Gitin
Ken Schubert, who runs Jazz In Flight series, said that he'd love to bring Dennis out here when he finds a new venue. DENNIS, YOU READING THIS?

Yes, thanks David...since this is Ellery and company's thread (I knew they would kick ass) I answered you on my thread. Thanks again. Glad you guys got to hang a bit with our JC tenor whiz!

[jazzfiend]

Enjoyed both sets immensely, catching several of my faves live for the first time. I'm referring to Ellery and Helias, both masters of the music and their instruments. Hemingway knocked me out with his inventive compositions, great solos, and incredible interplay. He's an emotional player with creative instincts and technical mastery.

Herb Robertson is something else again. He appears to transcend the physical aspects of the trumpet to achieve creative ends. His staccato blasts & jabs keep you on the edge of your seat, and his work with various mutes & plungers adds exciting colors & joyfulness to the music. A very unique and original player.

Mark Helias is one of the premier bassists in jazz, and a wonderful gentleman to boot. I had a nice discussion with him during the break, mainly about his Open Loose band with tony Malaby & Tom Rainey. I've been enjoying his latest cd, Verbs of Will, where Malaby displays maturity & passion on tenor. Mark's amplified acoustic bass sang loud & clear on Monday.

What more can be said about Ellery? The man has mastered the tenor sax, and can do no wrong. I'll just flat out say it: I love Ellery Eskelin! His roots appear to run deep, and he can swing hard with his always soulful tenor, as well as take it 'outside'. But with Ellery, even when wailing outside, I can always connect with his ever present lyricism and flowing lines.
And the man can play the blues, with added Baltimore

grease (as Mike says). As I told Ellery during the break, it's always a joy to hear the smooth & sultry sound of Ellery Eskelin. Man, what a sound! And a nicer cat cannot be found!

After the show I was able to snag 2 of Gerry's fine cd's: Johnny's Corner Song(which can only be had from Gerry), and Devil's Paradise, where Ray Anderson subs for Robin Eubanks. Both cd's are awesome, and beautifully recorded.

Also, meeting fellow posters Rainy, David, and Mike was clearly an added PLUS!
mike, your thoughts on the 2nd set are spot on!

Let's all try to make the Blythe show in December.


bye kids

[Sergio Zamora]

Originally posted by jazzfiend
and Devil's Paradise, where Ray Anderson subs for Robin Eubanks.

Actually, I think Robin subbed for Ray on "Johnny's Corner Song", as Ray has played on several of Hemingway's albums.

[Gary Sisco]

Ray and Gerry go way back to the mid-70s at least.

[jazzfiend]

Sergio, U be absolutely corectamundo! My intent was to say that Anderson was the only personnel change on the more recent session.