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Tony Allen: The Source
ByThere's a bit more Afrobeat feel to these arrangements, especially on the tracks with Cameroonian guitarist Indy Dibongue playing rhythm guitar. "Cruising" demonstrates this approach: it begins with a bass riff, joined by guitar, then piano (and of course the full drum kit). The horns come in full force, followed by the winds and brass playing a call and response pattern. It has the sound of a little big band. "On Fire" is built on a walking bass riff (again rock-solid playing by bassist Mathias Allamane), with a hard bop head. It's definitely a jazz tune, and elicits a jagged piano solo from Jean-Philippe Dary and a strong trumpet solo from Nicolas Giraud.
Dibongue gets a guitar solo on "Tony's Blues" (although it's still pretty rhythmic). "Push and Pull" has a contrapuntal horn introduction, showing that the horns are more than just an afterthought to the grooves. The closer "Life Is Beautiful" functions as the ballad of the set. It features Remi Sciuto's flute, and a guest clavinet solo from producer Vincent Taurelle (notable for using the instrument for something other than funk). African and French musicians playing American jazz, recorded on analog tape: this is fusion of a special kind.
Track Listing
1-Moody Boy 6:34 2-Bad Roads 5:48 3-Cruising 6:01 4-On Fire 6:17 5-Woro Dance 6:38 6-Tony's Blues 5:00 7-Wolf Eats Wolf 5:36 8-Cool Cats 4:23 9-Push and Pull 5:56 10-Ewajo 5:33 11-Life Is Beautiful 6:26
Personnel
Tony Allen
drumsTony Allen : Drums Mathias Allamane : Bass Indy Dibongue : Guitar Jean-Philippe Dary : Piano and Organ Yann Jankielewicz : Soprano Sax Nicolas Giraud : Trumpet and Flugelhorn Jean-Jacques Elangue : Tenor Sax Remi Sciuto : Baritone Sax, Alto Sax and Flute Daniel Zimmermann : Trombone and Tuba Damon Albarn : Piano on « Cool Cats » Vincent Taurelle : Clavinet on « Life is Beautifull »
Album information
Title: The Source | Year Released: 2017 | Record Label: Blue Note Records
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Monterey Jazz Festival 2017