Tag: Tom Tallitsch

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Burning Ambulance goes for a “Ride” with Tom Tallitsch…

http://burningambulance.com

Tom Tallitsch: Going For A Ride

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Tenor saxophonist Tom Tallitsch has put together a tight, empathetic band for his second CD on the Posi-Tone label (fifth release overall). Ride (buy it from Amazon/download it from Amazon MP3) features nine of his own compositions and two covers—David Bowie‘s “Life On Mars” and Led Zeppelin‘s “Ten Years Gone”—performed by trombonist Michael Dease, pianist Art Hirahara, bassist Peter Brendler, and drummer Rudy Royston. Tallitsch’s music is easy to like; the melodies are strong and memorable, the rhythms are steady and energetic, and the solos are extrapolations, rather than drop-everything fits of improvisatory excess.

The opening title track is built around a simple, clarion-call hook that sounds like something John Coltrane might have written in 1959. Dease sits this one out, leaving Tallitsch to sprint atop the road laid down by Brendler’s race-walking bass and Royston’s powerful, cracking drums. (His snare sound on this album alone makes it worth a listen or ten.) Hirahara drops chords into place like a bricklayer, before taking off on a lyrical, McCoy Tyner-esque solo. The leader’s soloing is disciplined but aggressive, staying in the tenor’s lower range to the point of almost sounding like a baritone at times. This eruptive opener is followed, though, by the patiently explored “Life On Mars,” on which barely any amendments are made to the melody. Dease’s trombone offers swelling tones in the background, where strings would be on a rock record, and Royston’s clattering drums are almost a lead instrument. This track is so hooky and strong, it almost seems designed for radio play.

Three more originals follow: “Rubbernecker,” “Rain,” and “The Giving Tree.” In order, they are: another hard-bop swinger in the vein of “Ride,” with Dease again absent but Tallitsch and Hirahara going full-bore as Royston’s crisp snare goads everyone along; a swaying ballad that offers Brendler a solo spot, and finds the leader playing with his horn’s upper register, getting perilously close to soprano territory; and a strutting, almost Latin number on which the trombonist finally returns, but again, he’s only adding a harmonic voice, and doesn’t solo.

The version of Led Zeppelin‘s “Ten Years Gone” that kicks off the album’s second half is less slavishly bound to the melody than the version of “Life On Mars” was. The band takes the simple, crashing blues chords as a framework for some impressive soloing, with Dease offering a countermelody behind Tallitsch that sound earwormingly reminiscent of the chorus to alternative rock act Marcy Playground‘s mid ’90s hit, “Sex and Candy.” The next piece up, “El Luchador,” is Brazilian in feel, despite its Mexican-referencing name (luchadors are masked Mexican wrestlers), and marks Dease’s first full-on trombone solo. It’s a highlight of the album—he’s fast and technical, pumping out crisply articulated bursts of notes rather than the smeary tones the trombone’s mostly known for, while maintaining a tight grip on the song’s melody and rhythm.

“The Myth” is about as abstract and scribbly as Ride ever gets—on this track, the band moves away from the punchy, classicist-but-not-retro hard bop they’ve been exploring for most of the album, in favor of a more winding, complex melody line and a more expansive rhythmic approach that make me think of Woody Shaw. There’s something about this track that calls to mind acoustic jazz of the 1970s (though fortunately, we’re spared that bouncy rubber-band bass sound). Dease gets another solo on the somewhat woozy “Knuckle Dragger,” and he’s looser and bluesier, still unleashing flurries of crisply chosen notes at times but also going for long ribbonlike tones. “The Path” is another burner, and the album ends with “Turtle,” an atmospheric but swinging track that feels indebted to the adventurous Blue Note albums of 1963-64—Bobby Hutcherson‘s Dialogue, Andrew Hill‘s Black Fire, Grachan Moncur III‘s Evolution, and the like. Dease is the lead player here, and his full, heartfelt tone, as well as his ability to ride a melody like a champion surfer (with Tallitsch right beside him), makes this a perfect closer to one of the most purely pleasurable jazz albums of 2014 so far.

—Phil Freeman

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Dan Bilawsky reviews several new Posi-Tone Releases for AAJ…

http://www.allaboutjazz.com

Some labels release a few records a year; some put out a record every month or two; and then there are those, like the Los Angeles-based Posi-Tone Records, that prefer to push even more music through the pipeline.

As 2014 came into being, Posi-Tone began an ambitious release schedule, putting out a new album every few weeks. Those who cover jazz and follow the scene intently can’t seem to turn around these days without bumping into one of their discs. Everything from groove dates to post-bop parties to beyond-the-norm entries fly under the banner of this small-but-thriving label. Here’s a look at four from the ever-growing Posi-Tone pile.

Brian Charette
Square One
Posi-Tone
2014

Organist Brian Charette has appeared as a sideman on several albums for this imprint, but Square One is his leader debut for Posi-Tone. He works with the tried-and-true organ trio format here and it suits him well.

Guitarist Yotam Silberstein and drummer Mark Ferber join Charette for what starts out solid and turns into a hell of a ride. The first few tracks on this one almost almost seem like a warm-up, as the band finds its footing with funk-to-swing fun (“Aaight!”), pays respect to Larry Young(saxophonist Joe Henderson’s “If”), and pleasantly waltzes on by (“Three Martina”). All of this material comes together well, but sparks don’t always fly. That all changes when the band finds its stride with The Meters’ “Ease Back.” That track, which comes at the midpoint of the album, starts the winning streak. Everything that follows is superb. Ferber’s snare drum groove on “A Fantasy” makes the song, Silberstein pulls out some Lionel Loueke-esque sounds on “Things You Don’t Mean,” and the whole band becomes strikingly unhinged during “Ten Bars For Eddie Harris.”

Charette’s ability to hunker down into a groove, look to the outer limits, or switch between the two at a moment’s notice helps to keep listeners on their toes during this delightful and occasionally daring date.

Jared Gold
JG3+3
Posi-Tone
2014

Jared Gold, like Charette, has never subscribed to old school organ orthodoxy. He’ll give the past its due, but he works in the present. This is his seventh album in seven years—all released on Posi-Tone—and it finds him fronting an augmented organ trio, with three horns added to the mix. These other voices don’t dominate the program, but they do get to step out on occasion, round out the sound of the group, create some harmonic heft, and add some secondary colors to these pieces.

The album opens on Gold’s slow swinging “Pendulum,” guitarist Dave Stryker’s crackling “Spirits,” and Julian “Cannonball” Adderley’s gospel-inflected “Sermonette,” complete with some baritone saxophone preaching from Jason W. Marshall. The attention then shifts to the core trio during a take on James Taylor’s “Shower The People” that shifts focus from nuanced texture painting to slick-and-slippery funk. Drummer Sylvia Cuenca steals the show on a burning “No Moon At All,” trumpeter Tatum Greenblatt steps up to the plate on “I Just Can’t Stop Loving You,” and alto saxophonist Patrick Cornelius gets to shine on Gold’s lively-and-bouncy “Fantified.” This mostly-covers set finishes with two more, as a smoking “Cubano Chant” and comfortable “Charcoal Blues” finish things off in style.
Steve Fidyk
Heads Up!
Posi-Tone
2014

Drummer Steve Fidyk is best known for his sideman and studio contributions, writing for Modern Drummer magazine, and work with the Taylor/Fidyk Big Band. Here, he makes his bones with the Posi-Tone gang by fronting a quintet that features a pair of heavy-hitters—trumpeterTerell Stafford and saxophonist Tim Warfield. The program contains four Fidyk originals, two numbers from guitarist Shawn Purcell, and three covers.

Heads Up!, like the aforementioned Charette album, doesn’t start out with the most distinctive music on the disc. It’s the first cover—”Make Someone Happy”—that, strangely enough, gives Fidyk’s music its own identity. A muted Stafford draws focus as Fidyk’s brushes glide along below. From that point on, most everything makes its mark. Purcell’s guitar and Regan Brough’s bass join together for the Charlie Parker-ish “Might This Be-Bop,” which is also bolstered by Fidyk’s brushes, and Stafford picks up his flugelhorn for an uncommonly slow and beautiful take on “I Can See Clearly Now.”

Fidyk’s most notable originals—”The Flip Flopper,” a funky tune with some memorable guitar work from Purcell, and the warm-hearted “T.T.J.”—come later in the album, but it’s Cole Porterthat has the final word; Fidyk and company finish with a metrically-altered “Love For Sale” that’s pure fun.

Tom Tallitsch
Ride
Posi-Tone
2014

Saxophonist Tom Tallitsch focuses on his own music on his second release on Posi-Tone and fifth date as a leader. He throws in David Bowie’s “Life On Mars” and Led Zeppelin’s “Ten Years Gone” for good measure, but the other nine tracks are all of his making.

Tallitsch proves to be a commanding player throughout Ride, but it’s the sidemen that help to bring out the best in the music. Rock solid players like pianist Art Hirahara and bassistPeter Brendler help to keep things running smoothly, guest trombonist Michael Dease brings the heat, and Rudy Royston, the seemingly ubiquitous super drummer, adds some wattage to Tallitsch’s tunes. Royston’s in high spirits on the title track and he drives the hell out of a few other numbers.

While the faster material always carries excitement with it, Talitsch’s strongest pieces aren’t the burners. “Rain,” which Tallitsch accurately frames as “gospel country,” the Brazilian-tinged “El Luchador,” which gives Dease a chance to shine, and the bluesy “Knuckle Dragger” all leave more of a lasting impression on the ear.

Tracks and Personnel

Square One

Tracks: Aaight!; If; Three For Martina; People On Trains; True Love; Ease Back; Time Changes; A Fantasy; Yei Fei; Things You Don’t Mean; Ten Bars For Eddie Harris.

Personnel: Brian Charette: organ; Yotam Silberstein: guitar; Mark Ferber: drums.

JG3+3

Tracks: Pendulum; Spirits; Sermonette; Shower The People; No Moon At All; I Just Can’t Stop Loving You; Fantified; Cubano Chant; Charcoal Blues.

Personnel: Jared Gold: organ; Dave Stryker: guitar; Sylvia Cuenca: drums; Patrick Cornelius: alto saxophone; Jason Marshall: baritone saxophone; Tatum Greenblatt: trumpet.

Heads Up!

Tracks: Untimely; Last Nerve; Make Someone Happy; Might This Be-Bop; I Can See Clearly Now; The Flip Flopper; The Bender; T.T.J.; Love For Sale.

Personnel: Steve Fidyk: drums; Terell Stafford: trumpet, flugelhorn; Tim Warfield: tenor saxophone; Shawn Purcell: guitar; Regan Brough: bass.

Ride

Tracks: Ride; Life On Mars; Rubbernecker; Rain; The Giving Tree; Ten Years Gone; El Luchador; The Myth; Knuckle Dragger; The Path; Turtle.

Personnel: Tom Tallitsch: tenor saxophone; Michael Dease; trombone; Art Hirahara: piano; Peter Brendler: bass; Rudy Royston.

 
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SomethingElse Reviews Tom Tallitsch “Ride”…

http://somethingelsereviews.com

Two years after Heads of Tales , a searing date backed by Jared Gold, Mark Ferber and David Allen, tenor saxman Tom Tallitsch returns with another strong crew for Ride (March 4, Posi-Tone Records), in fact arguably even more so: Rudy Royston on drums, Art Hirahara on piano, Peter Brendler on bass and the phenomenal Michael Dease on trombone.

The change-up in instrumentation does nothing to change Tallitsch’s mission of evangelizing the hard bop form through the bell of his saxophone. Ride swings and grooves with flawless proficiency by guys who aren’t just going through the motions. Tallitsch’s traditionally minded saxophone diction never forgets that soul is an important part of it, but so is forgetting a lick once it’s played, too. That’s why he can go a while on a solo as he does on “El Luchador” and keep it interesting all the way through. And he can swing like the old masters, amply demonstrated on cuts like “The Giving Tree.”

Dease isn’t present on every track, but when he’s called in to help, he provides the perfect foil, and his solos on “El Luchador,” “Turtle” and especially “Knuckle Dragger” are fluid and full of character but in a graceful way. The rhythm section makes a lot of hay on the spicier numbers like “The Myth,” and Royston leaves behind a show stopping display on drums during his break on “Ride,” while Hirahara shines on “The Path.” Also during “The Path,” Brendler’s against-the-grain bass line offers up a funky counterpoint.

During the last go-around Tallitsch adapted a song from a rock icon (Neil Young’s “Don’t Let It Bring You Down”) into the jazz form the right way, by embracing the core melody. He does this again on Ride, putting his own stamp on David Bowie’s lofty gem “Life On Mars” and Led Zeppelin’s Physical Graffiti deep cut, the splendidly downtrodden “Ten Years Gone.” On the former tune, Tallitsch’s sax takes on the vocal role, his sax accurately locating the emotional center of the song. For the Page/Plant song, he doubles with Dease to give it a late 60s Jazz Crusaders-type groove, but one that maintains the original’s serious tone.

New personnel and backup instrumentation doesn’t matter; Ride is another sturdy, deft straight-ahead affair from Tom Tallitsch.

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Music and More reviews Tom Tallitsch new CD “Ride”…

http://jazzandblues.blogspot.com

Tom Tallitsch is a tenor saxophone player working on the modern mainstream scene, recording as a leader and a sideman regularly. He is accompanied by Art Hirahara on piano, Mike Dease on trombone, Peter Brendler on bazz and Rudy Royston on drums. “Ride” opens the album with a strong beginning that builds to a boiling tempo and fine saxophone solo and an exciting drum solo. The David Bowie song “Life on Mars” was a surprise, but a pleasant one as Tallitsch steps back and plays a nice lyrical performance. “Rubbernecker” ramps the music back up to quick modern jazz, fast and loose with escalating and cascading waves of notes and rippling piano, bass and drums interlude. Tallitsch and Dease harmonize during the beginning of “The Giving Tree” staying taught before the leader’s saxophone is able to break free with a well controlled solo underpinned by pulsating bass. It is a great solo with a waterfall of streaming sound. “The Myth” is a longer performance, opening calmly before worrying in some more nervous dynamics as the tempo of the performance increases and Tallitsch makes his solo faster and faster. Royston is excellent here developing rhythms that shift and change in an exciting manner. (March 4, 2014)

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Critical Jazz reviews Tom Tallitsch “Ride”…

http://www.criticaljazz.com

Tom Tallitsch shows exponential growth both as a performer and a composer and is certainly a name to remember!
Brent Black / www.criticaljazz.com
Ride is the sophomore release from Tom Tallitsch on Posi-Tone Records. The stellar cover art is an excellent representation of a release that is evocative, energized and delightfully eclectic. This quintet is firing on all cylinders with all star drummer Rudy Royston keeping everyone on the rhythmic straight and narrow with pianist Art Hirahara and bassist Peter Brendler rounding out a formidable rhythm section that shift dynamics on the fly providing a solid base from which Tallitsch can work. Joining Tom is all star trombonist Michael Dease and the artful manipulation of swing has Ride carefully walking that fine line between the typical cerebral/visceral releases that dot the straight ahead landscape.
Covers…These can be the equivalent of tap dancing in a melodic minefield and taking on tunes from David Bowie and Led Zeppelin are certainly not done without some natural trepidation. Bowie’s “Life On Mars” is dialed down to an exquisite ballad while the reharm of the iconic Zeppelin standard “Ten Years Gone” puts a fresh coat of paint on an album rock classic long assumed hiding out in the rock and roll witness program by many. From the opening swing of “Ride” to the slightly odd metered gem ” Rubbernecker” the tone is open, warm and above all relaxed. While Ride is a release with subtle nuances hidden within a lyrical sense of purpose and a textured rhythmic sense of drive. There is not an ounce of pretentious pyrotechnics to be found and perhaps it is this inner confidence that translates a relaxed virtually live feeling to this recording. Michael Dease provides the counterpoint that makes tunes like “Knuckle Dragger” and “Turtle” somewhat reminiscent of Wayne Shorter’s early Blue Note work yet Tom Tallitsch is doing a riff on no one but himself.

I once made the statement that Posi-Tone may carry the best stable of saxophonists working the straight ahead side of the street and Tom Tallitsch more than proves this point. 

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Midwest Record reviews “Heads or Tales”…

midwestrecord.com

TOM TALLITSCH/Heads or Tales: Not only a jazzbo but a bleeding heart liberal as well since he uses music to cut through autism at his various school and clinic work. He’s also one killer, mainstream sax man as well. Here we find Posi-Tone working on developing their house sound as label mate Jared Gold is heating up the B3 chair doing his part to keep this quartet working in overdrive. Tasty stuff throughout that is going to push Tallitsch into that spot where he has to decide between teaching and touring. Hot stuff that’s going to find him less and less of a well kept secret every day. Check it out.

8096

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North Country Public Radio interview with Tom Tallitsch…

www.northcountrypublicradio.org

Tenor Saxophonist Tom Tallitsch’s new CD, Heads Or Tales, blends classic sounds with contemporary compositions

Tom Tallitsch

Tom Tallitsch

(05/05/12) Tom Tallitsch has just released a new CD for Posi-Tone Records, and has tapped three great players to interpret his modern compositions with an old school sound. He talked about it with Joel Hurd on The Bridge.
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Karl Stark reviews Tom Tallitsch “Heads or Tales”…

www.philly.com

Organ jazz, which has deep roots in Philly, often veers close to R&B or hard bop. Tenor saxophonist Tom Tallitsch, a Cleveland native who has taught at the Philadelphia Clef Club, takes organ jazz in a cool modernist direction, making this quartet session smart and dark. Tallitsch, a jazz radio host on Mercer County Community College’s WWFM HD2, also runs a music-tutoring business in Princeton. Intimations of organ jazz’s soul roots emerge on “Tenderfoot,” but that becomes context for deeper explorations, fueled by drummer Mark Ferber. The set of originals often crackles with unexpected combustion. Organist Jared Gold creates some edgy effects on “Double Shot,” while guitarist Dave Allen plumbs a more cosmic mode on the smoky ballad “Perry’s Place.” Tallitsch & Co. sometimes play with sounds. The organ effects on “Dunes” feel like the Shore.

 

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Tim Niland writes up Tom Tallitsch “Heads or Tales”…

jazzandblues.blogspot.com

Tenor saxophonist Tom Tallitsch looks to demonstrate his talent as player and a composer on his debut for Posi-Tone Records. He is accompanied by Dave Allen on guitar, Jared Gold on organ and Mark Ferber on drums. The album is made up of original compositions and one interesting cover of Neil Young’s “Don’t Let It Bring You Down” which is taken as a stately ballad with melodic saxophone leading the way. Among the original compositions, the opener “Coming Around” has a swinging medium tempo feeling with Tallitsch’s saxophone sailing over organ bursts and a fluid guitar solo. Switching to a faster pace, “Double Shot” features light textured saxophone improvising over the music before the organ, bass and drums unit gets their turn setting the leader up for a ripe concluding solo. Drums open “Flat Stanley” setting the stage for Gold’s organ to fill in with a quasi funky feeling. Tallitsch’s saxophone does a little strutting, keeping with the loose feeling of the song. “Travel Companion” reverts to a medium tempo with the full band improvising on the melody. Gold makes long tones on the organ before building to a flashy solo and Allen makes his mark here as well probing and embellishing on his solo. This was a solid album, definitely worth looking into if you are a fan of modern mainstream jazz. The music is straight ahead and focused on melodic improvisations and remains quite accessible.

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Bruce Lindsay reviews Tom Tallitsch “Heads or Tales”…

www.allaboutjazz.com

Tenor saxophonist Tom Tallitsch makes his Posi-Tone debut with Heads Or Tales, a welcome addition to that label’s impressively strong roster of straight-ahead and swinging musicians. Tallitsch has a warm tone, a lyrical and flowing style and an ability to craft solos that add to the narrative of his compositions: qualities that make the tunes—all but one his own compositions—immediately accessible, yet capable of rewarding repeated listening with fresh revelations.

While Heads And Tales is his label debut, it’s actually the Cleveland-born, New York-based saxophonist’s fourth album since the self-produced Duality (2005). It’s the sound of an experienced and confident player; his tenor saxophone sound is stamped across the album, either crafting melodies or delivering finely-judged solos, but he never attempts to overwhelm his band mates, never outstays his welcome and never stretches a tune too far. There are plenty of other players who could learn from Tallitsch’s economy of composition and interpretation.

Guitarist Dave Allen is a strongly melodic player and an emphatic second lead voice. His single-note playing flows beautifully, giving his solos a fluidity and grace that matches Tallitsch’s own. “Double Shot” and “Flat Stanley” find Allen and Tallitsch trading fast-paced lines, while slower tunes, like the cool swinger “Travel Companion” and balladic “Perry’s Place,” give them space to share more reflective phrases underpinned by Jared Gold’s Hammond organ.

Gold can almost be described as Posi-Tone’s house organist, with numerous appearances on the label as leader or sideman. He is a consistently fine player, with a great sense of dynamics and a swinging, rhythmical, style. He forms an excellent partnership with drummer Mark Ferber, sharing a tough, driving, approach to the music that helps to build its power and excitement. Gold also contributes an imaginative array of tones, and some telling individual contributions such as his intense, tight solo on “Tenderfoot.”

Tallitsch closes with an unusual choice of cover tunes, Neil Young’s classic, “Don’t Let It Bring You Down.” Tallitsch plays it straight—his version just 20 seconds longer than Young’s original on After The Goldrush (Reprise, 1970)—but ensures that his saxophone sound retains the mood of Young’s lyric. It’s just one facet of Tallitsch’s abilities, as Heads Or Tales makes abundantly and enjoyably clear.