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CD Review: Kenny Burrell Trio-  12.15.78
Disc 1: Live at Village Vanguard    Disc 2: Kenny Burrell in N.Y

Label: 32 Jazz
Personnel: Kenny Burrell-guitar, Larry Gales-bass, Sherman Ferguson-drums

My introduction to jazz back in the early sixties came in the form of a quartet of semi-commercial albums by artists such as Stan Getz (Jazz Samba), Stan Kenton (West Side Story), Dave Brubeck’s Time Out, and an obscure Jimmy Smith LP called Any Number Can Win. Organ master Smith had experienced some success in the marketplace with The Sermon and Back At The Chicken Shack, and to the best of my recall Any Number, which I understand has recently been reissued by Verve, was a follow-up to those now-classic Bluenotes.

What I remember most clearly from my limited perspective as a fledgling jazz listener was the sound of the guitar player on that LP. Then, as now, Kenny Burrell had a sound that got my attention. Familiar enough for my R & B sensibilities, yet possessed of something more that I hadn’t yet been exposed to, Burrell’s music had a bite to it that wasn’t evident in the music on those other three LPs. I didn't know what it was then, but listening to KB these days it’s obvious. The Kenny Burrell sound is the hybrid of post-bop jazz guitar and Detroit working class soul . Rooted in roadhouse blues, and saxophone bop, Kenny Burrell’s music is a bridge between styles. And for me it was easier to cross that bridge than it was to get with the more genteel sounds of the two Stan’s and Brubeck. (As I write this reminiscence, I’m reminded that that there is currently a renewed interest in "soul-jazz" from that time, another generation of jazz lovers being introduced to this music through the back door, so to speak.)

December 15, 1978 was one of many nights that Kenny Burrell’s trios wowed the crowd at the Village Vanguard, and if it was a typical night, it indicates a consistently high level of musicianship. Thankfully, the tape was rolling, and thankfully 32Jazz has reissued the results on a two-fer that combines the previously titled Live at the Village Vanguard and Kenny Burrell in New York. Disc One is heavy on standards repertoire, though often done in less than standard ways. Burrell seems to never run out of fresh ideas for solos, and drummer Ferguson and bassist Larry Gales frequently employ the Latin tinge on material that is usually swung. In this set KB takes on The Work Song as his solo vehicle, and treats the crowd to a full length version of his blues theme It’s Getting Dark.

Disc Two opens with a re-working of Sonny Rollins’ Pent Up House. KB and company sneak up on the familiar tune with an intro that offers no hint of what is to come, and with a samba groove that further obscures what’s ahead. Sherman Ferguson’s many-chorus solo on Pent Up House is a fine example of the melodic kind of drum solo that is his stock in trade. Burrell’s penchant for standard fare continues with But Beautiful, Bags Groove, and Makin’ Whoopee, on which Larry Gales displays his wares. In this set the solo guitar feature is the lovely Mercer/Arlen composition Come Rain or Come Shine. The standout closer is Love, Your Magic Spell is Everywhere, a slow latin-rock piece that is reminiscent of Burrell’s Bluenote "hit" Chitlins Con Carne, and demonstrates his ability to mix genres successfully.

Taken together, the two discs represent one of those many nights that Kenny Burrell brought his music to the Village Vanguard over the years. And it moves me to think of just how many years have passed since his music first spoke to me. It was probably one of the first times that a sideman made me sit up and take note, and I’ve been listening ever since. 

- Richard Mayer  

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