Once again, the e-card for the June tour:
The Village Vanguard run is going really well. Cats are coming out to see the maestro. The first night Steve Jordan and Nasheet Waits posed with Billy in the kitchen:
Last night, it was Johnathan Blake, Alvester Garnett, Bill Stewart, and Jun Saito.
Thanks to the supportive New York critics, who have been very nice all around.
Blurbs from The New Yorker:
The veteran drummer Hart, the pianist ETHAN IVERSON, the bassist BEN STREET, and the accomplished saxophonist MARK TURNER have collaborated on one of the most persuasive recordings of the year so far, “One Is the Other,” which shows that the foursome, which has played together for the better part of a decade, is achieving its potential. The group’s original compositions are intriguing, and the musicians’ take on Rodgers and Hammerstein’s “Some Enchanted Evening” is a thing of true beauty.
New York Times (Nate Chinen):
★ Billy Hart Quartet (Tuesday through June 8) Billy Hart is a drummer of earthy enlightenment, conversant in every branch of modern jazz but forever connected to its root. His quartet — with the tenor saxophonist Mark Turner, the pianist Ethan Iverson and the bassist Ben Street — has a typically fine new album, “One Is the Other,” which will provide much of the repertory for this run. At 8:30 and 10:30 p.m., Village Vanguard, 178 Seventh Avenue South, at 11th Street, West Village, 212-255-4037.
Village Voice (Jim Macnie):
As the veteran drummer’s foursome develops, the grace they broker becomes more essential to its personality. Can’t say if it’s the lithe horn lines of Mark Turner or the well-chosen asides of pianist Ethan Iverson, but the music on the newish One Is The Other (ECM) has the kind of sweep that connects each passage to the next – it almost seems like one long piece. Of course Hart’s mastery at keeping everything fluid has a lot to do with it. On stage they’re a bit more tactile – and that physicality can be revelatory. Don’t miss.
---
WBGO had Billy on the show Monday to talk with Shelia Anderson, archived here.
Martin Johnson reviewed Billy and Jeff Ballard albums in the Wall Street Journal. Hey, Jeff's in town at the Jazz Standard this week, too. Of course, there's also much more.
DTM: Interview(s) with Billy Hart.