Tag: Ben Wolfe

icondv.com

Ben Wolfe ★★★★

The Whisperer

Posi-tone

Bassist Ben Wolfe keeps a low profile on The Whisperer and his subtle presence clues you in to the album’s title. It’s as if he’s inviting you to listen to how good his band sounds. A refined musician, Wolfe stealthily defers to the vibrant soprano and tenor saxophonist Stacy Dillard to voice his compositions while rounding out his quartet with an essential Orrin Evans on piano and the surefire drummer Donald Edwards. The quartet shines as a unit, deftly navigating the changes on sharply edged tunes—the excellent “Heroist” has a surging groove and features an arresting solo by Evans. Among several strong ballads, the best is the graceful “Hat In Hand,” a deliberate and lovely number with a fulsome melody and warm late-night glow. This excellent album makes for a rewarding listen. Fine writing, superlative improvisation, experienced leadership and Wolfe’s steadfast bass gives The Whisperer its juice.  (12 tracks; 60 minutes)

aaj.com

While swimming in the rather large body of sounds that comprise the jazz mainstream, Ben Wolfe‘s The Whisperer evinces no obvious stylistic points of reference or influence, possesses unusual depth, and adds up to something larger and more significant than a composite of impressive individual performances. Wolfe’s compositions—eleven out of the disc’s twelve tracks—comprise the record’s core. He crafts melodies that are familiar in a good way, and encases them in tightly knit, logical, non-standard forms.

There’s a marvelous sense of connectedness in the compositions, ensemble playing, and the overall relationship between Wolfe’s bass, tenor and soprano saxophonist Stacy Dillard, pianist Orrin Evans, and drummer Donald Edwards—as well as trumpeter Josh Evans, who plays on one track. Most of these musicians have displayed resolute, highly individualistic personalities on previous recording projects. Throughout The Whisperer they seem to be laying back just a little, each curtailing a determined stride down his own path in favor of intently listening and thoughtfully responding to one another. In small doses their strengths are magnified. The totality of all of these overlapping relationships makes it hard to imagine the compositions without the individuals playing them; conversely, it’s difficult to fathom the rich, nuanced, performances outside of the context of Wolfe’s compositions. 

Track Listing: Heroist; Hat In Hand; Community; Love Is Near; S.T.F.U.; Camelot’s Lean; Chronos; All The Things You Are; The Whisperer; Becoming Brothers; The Balcony; If Only.

Personnel: Ben Wolfe: bass; Orrin Evans: piano; Stacy Dillard: soprano saxophone, tenor saxophone; Donald Edwards: drums; Josh Evans: trumpet (5).

dustedmagazine.com

Working with big personalities is a recurring theme in bassist Ben Wolfe’s career arc. Half a decade spent in the employ of Harry Connick Jr. as the pianist’s musical director led to an extended tenure with Wynton Marsalis and ongoing membership in the Lincoln Center Jazz Orchestra. Wolfe parlayed those high profile assignments into a professional relationship with Grammy-winning singer Diana Krall. Along the way came gigs with Joe Henderson, Harry “Sweets” Edison, James Moody and other jazz royalty. All that name-dropping suggests an operator able to meet his bandleaders’ needs in an exacting and superlative fashion.

The Whisperer, Wolfe’s latest as a leader, points to one of the potential side effects of being a successful sideman to the stars. When a musician devotes his talent regularly to that kind of wattage does his own individuality and assertiveness necessarily suffer in the bargain? Put differently, when one is accustomed to delivering top flight work for others does it become at all difficult to switch gears into a leadership role? Wolfe’s lead-from-behind approach here suggests a compelling case that while it very well might, the overall effect isn’t adverse or worth getting worked up about.

The band at hand draws directly from the lasting ties Wolfe developed with the vibrant scene operating out of the Greenwich Village jazz club Smalls. Pianist Orrin Evans, saxophonist Stacy Dillard and drummer Donald Edwards are all regulars there and the quartet evinces the kind of rapport built from nightly stage conclaves from the opening hard swinger “Heroist”. Wolfe walks confidently through most of the piece, leaving the fireworks to Evans and Dillard. The slow ballad “Hat in Hand” finds him gearing down to a more porous sound, spacing his notes judiciously against the steady cymbal splashes of Edwards. Dillard’s soprano glides through the theme in close concert with Evans and result is a standout track.

Aplomb is also abundantly apparent in Wolfe’s chosen songbook, all originals except for a pithy rendering of “All the Things You Are”. His writing is uniformly sharp, evidence again that all that time spent in the company of heavy hitters rubbed off in the form of a decisive compositional voice. “Community” has the soaring, effervescent openness of classic postbop and benefits directly from another spiraling Dillard turn on the straight horn.  “S.T.F.U.” mirrors the stern sentiment of its acronym title on the back of a funky bass groove and a guest spot by trumpeter Josh Evans who proves just as attuned as the others to Wolfe’s self-effacing intents and purposes. Evans and Dillard are the principal soloists on most pieces, suggesting not a reticence on the part of the leader, but rather an abiding confidence in the expertise of his colleagues.

notreble.com

Jazz Bassist/Composer Ben Wolfe Leads Quintet on “The Whisperer”

Ben Wolfe The Whisperer Posi-Tone 2015

criticaljazz.com

Bassist Ben Wolfe is a master technician with an all star band and the end result, The Whisperer!

There are certain things one can count on in life and they are death, taxes and Posi-Tone Records releasing some of the finest straight ahead improvisational music. The Whisperer is Wolfe’s first  Posi-Tone release and a showcase for his compositional prowess. There is an amazing organic soul to this release that is part of the new sound of modern jazz. The band is composed of underrated saxophonist Stacy Dillard, the magnificent Orrin Evans on piano and the rhythmic beast that is Donald Edwards.

Only one cover and that being a stellar reharm of “All The Things You Are” along with 11 originals from Wolfe. Odd meters, shifting dynmmics, and straight ahead swing make tunes such as “Love Is Near” along with “The Balcony” and “If Only” sound as though they are standards in the on deck circle. The Whisperer is what happens when you capture lighting in a bottle!

allaboutjazz.com

Ben Wolfe is the man responsible for double bass duties for some of the most popular names in jazz. As well as his six previous albums as leader, in a recording career that extends back to the ’80s Wolfe can also be heard on a fist-full of recordings by Harry Connick Jr, Diana Krall and Wynton Marsalis among others. What keeps him gainfully employed by some of the jazz world’s biggest hitters? The Whisperer, a superb combination of great tunes and great playing, soon answers that question.

Wolfe’s partners on The Whisperer—pianist Orrin Evans, drummer Donald Edwards and saxophonist Stacy Dillard—might not be as world-renowned as Krall, Marsalis and company, but they’re prodigiously talented. Like Wolfe they all have impeccable taste, never over-playing, always supportive of each other. Evans’ comping is a masterclass in timing and effectiveness, Edwards is equally capable of combining with Wolfe to create and maintain the pulse or to spring from Wolfe’s steady bass rhythm to weave his percussion around the melody.

Wolfe’s talents as a writer are also much in evidence—with the exception of a mournful take on Jerome Kern’s “All The Things You Are” the tunes are Wolfe’s own. “Hat In Hand” and “Camelot’s Lean,” featuring Dillard on soprano, demonstrate the quartet’s laid-back, controlled, playing. The sound becomes noticeably warmer when Dillard moves to tenor sax on the melancholy “Love Is Near,” Dillard’s silky tone giving the number a softness that contrasts with the cooler soprano.

“Heroist,” anchored by Evans’ emphatic left hand and featuring Dillard’s wildest soprano, “The Balcony”—tenor and piano interweaving melodies built on the pulse of bass and drums—and the moody “Chronos” showcase a more up-tempo side. “The Whisperer” is a mid-tempo swinger—Wolfe and Edwards set up a sense of urgency, Evans’ comping evokes added suspense and Dillard’s tenor completes the noir-ish atmosphere. For drama, it’s the album’s star attraction.

allaboutjazz.com

Track Listing: Heroist; Hat In Hand; Community; Love Is Near; S.T.F.U.; Camelot’s Lean; Chronos; All The Things You Are; The Whisperer; Becoming Brothers; The Balcony; If Only.

Personnel: Ben Wolfe: bass; Orrin Evans: piano; Donald Edwards; drums; Stacy Dillard: soprano saxophone, tenor saxophone; Josh Evans: trumpet (trk 5).

— Mark Corroto

SomethingElse.com

Ben Wolfe is a bassist who some of the biggest stars in jazz call upon. Star vocalists Harry Connick, Jr., Dianne Reeves and Diana Krall have worked extensively with him, and he’s also performed and recorded with Wynton & Branford Marsalis, Joe Henderson, Billy Higgins and Doc Cheatham.

Since 1997 Wolfe has made a number of records of his own, where as a leader he has uses those occasions to present his own compositions, sophisticated numbers in the mainstream jazz realm. His eighth one, The Whisperer, (out on February 17, 2015) marks his first one for Posi-Tone Records, and it’s a perfect match of artist and label.

That’s because Ben Wolfe leads sessions with top-flight personnel such as JD Allen, Marcus Strickland, and Jeff “Tain” Watts and executes with precision, grace and looseness, all Posi-Tone hallmarks. For The Whisperer, he carries over a couple of aces in pianist Orrin Evans and drummer Don Edwards from the prior 2013 offering From Here I See. The quartet is rounded out by Stacy Dillard on saxophones.

A bluesy mood permeates these performances and on a lot of them, the swing is supple and strong. That’s certainly the case for “Heroist,” where Evans delivers a taut solo and Edwards’ rhythms are deceptively complex, as Wolfe leads the rollicking head. He begins “S.T.F.U.” with a bass spotlight recalling Paul Chambers and then firmly anchors this post-bop tune that includes guest trumpet player Josh Evans playing with cool confidence as Orrin Evans sits this one out.

Dillard, though, gets the most opportunities to star on this record and makes the most of it. On the ballad “Love Is Near,” his large, sultry tenor is a welcome throwback to the Coleman Hawkins school of moody saxophone. On the waltzing “Community,” he blows a soprano sax with a spring in his step, injecting cheerfulness into the song. He brings out the melancholy qualities of the horn on the slow numbers “Camelot’s Lean” and “If Only,” and is wistful on the soprano on Ben Wolfe’s lone cover selection “All The Things You Are,” which is transformed simply by being slowed down.

“Chronos” stands out for its irresistibly funky gait that’s made possible by the syncopated simpatico between Wolfe and Edwards. More great interplay is found on “The Balcony” where Evans and Dillard (on tenor sax) come in together after Wolfe’s walking bass intro and solo on parallel planes.

Ben Wolfe’s Posi-Tone label debut The Whisperer is quality straight-ahead jazz because Wolfe and his crew do everything the right way. It’s little wonder why he’s a trusted collaborator and sideman for some of jazz’s biggest names.