Destination Unknown

While I’m not
particularly a voracious reader of business articles, I am fond of reading Business
World’s Weekender columns. Talks about stock markets, the latest Lucio Tan
establishments, and Ayala’s business strategies tend to bore me to hibernation;
on the other hand, the weekend specials aptly called The Weekender have a
diversity of mostly business-unrelated topics – such as arts, movies,
lifestyle, music, books - that are highly sophisticated and interesting, and
always well-written and informative.

Last Monday’s edition
of Business World contains a column about the best selling jazz albums of 2006.
Being that I have heard much of them, I figured this is a good opportunity to
give my thoughts on some of 2006’s chart-toppers.

Michael Buble –
It’s Time

Self-professed Frank
Sinatra fan, Buble demonstrates that Frankie’s style isn’t as outdated as most
Gen X’s or Y’s youth may think. By crooning like Frankie but choosing
arrangements and songs that are more suited for this generation, Buble sets out
to capture the heart of young and older audiences alike. And in that it
succeeds, especially since it tops the chart, being No. 1 among the bestselling
jazz albums of yesteryear. However, I’m not that impressed. Mind you, the first
few songs - like A Foggy Day (in London Town), especially the part where
Buble’s vocal rise like he’s agitated and constipated - were pretty lively and
well done. But further into the album, and the songs start becoming stale, less
memorable, less significant and more tedious. Some songs from other genres –
like the Beatles original Can’t Buy Me Love and Stevie Wonder’s You
and I - do not bear quite the same emotional impact when converted to a big
band, Broadway style of music. A few originals, instead of just covers, can’t
be too bad either. Still, I’m aware that people will buy this album anyway
regardless of my opinion, and at least I can rest easy about this album not
being as bad as other popular mediums. Rating: 3 out of 5.

Diana Krall –
Christmas Songs

Keep in mind that this
kind of album works only for certain occasions, and I’m not going to go back to
it for this capsule review, because it certainly won’t evoke the same emotions.
I recall that it worked quite as well for feeling the warmth of Christmas.
However, I don’t remember much of the songs, besides a cover of Vince Guaraldi’s
Christmastime is Here. Quite a solid Christmas album, but not one that
will be remembered quite as fondly as Bing Crosby’s White Christmas or
Vince Guaraldi’s A Charlie Brown Christmas. Rating: 3.5 out of 5.

Chriss Botti –
To Love Again: The Duets

I just don’t get it.
Jazz used to be so much fun! Artists were willing to always rewrite definitions
and break the rules. These days though, I get the impression that most jazz
artists are content to rest on their laurels by merely copying songs of the
past, and then serve it with even less aggression. After all, it is to their
advantage that the materials they cover have become relatively forgotten. Chris
Botti Duets album belongs to the most cowardly of jazz genres, also known as
smooth jazz. Not out there to take risks, smooth jazz has only one goal in
mind: to make a pleasant, inoffensive ambience this side of the hotel
lounge/coffee house relaxation, and not to fuel anyone to actually listen
intently to the performance. As a performer of this genre, Botti’s relatively
good, and at least is more skilled than Kenny G; however, I get the sneaky
suspicion that he could do so much more with the trumpet than cover songs in
nearly the exact same way as they were done in the past. And the way this album
shows in my iPod annoys me to no end (it’s a duets album after all, so go
figure why). Still, Botti earn some points for trying and for not ruining the
materials chosen for the album, even if they weren’t done hard and creative
enough. Ratings: 3 out of 5.

Diana Krall –
From This Moment On

Diana Krall’s From
This Moment On is a lot more interesting than Buble’s It’s Time, in
that I thought it worked a lot better for the chillout mood. Diana Krall doesn’t
only sing, but also plays the piano, so it’s ostensible that she’s got more
talent than the average jazz artist. When she’s singing and playing the piano
at the same time, it works quite well. I especially admire her rendition of It
Could Happen to You, Exactly Like You and Isn’t It A Lovely Day,
although I feel that her From This Moment On is a little forced, and her
How Insensitive is bad (side note: How I wish people would stop covering
How Insensitive. It’s tired, period.). Also, another reason why I can’t
give this album a higher score is due to her latter songs also suffering from
being insignificant B-siders. Still, it comes recommended to anyone. Rating: 4
out of 5.

Thelonious Monk
and John Coltrane – At Carnegie Hall

Thelonious Monk and
John Coltrane are names both remembered for being masters of their craft.
Thelonious Monk for being the genius pianist of bebop music, and John Coltrane
for being one of the best saxophonists there ever is. Both of them made music
that broke grounds: Monk for having a style that can never be imitated;
Coltrane for exploring wide ranges of possibilities for jazz music (he did
bebop, cool, and free jazz). So, I have nothing but praises for whoever came up
with the idea of releasing their Carnegie Hall concert record. Take note: I’m a
big fan of them both, but this album, despite being recently released, is one
that I would consider to be the best of their work (besides Coltrane’s A
Love Supreme). While being more of Monk’s than Coltrane’s album, in that
the materials are mostly Monk’s standards – such as Monk’s Mood, Evidence,
Epistrophe, Nutty and Bye-Ya - what makes it effective is
Coltrane’s and Monk’s compatibility. Whilst being extraordinary, their combined
efforts are sparsely recorded, and that’s why I couldn’t be happier that some
record companies are releasing previously unreleased materials of great music.
A masterpiece! Rating: 5 out of 5

Kenny G: The Greatest Holiday Classics

For the interest of
readers who personally know me and my hatred for Kenny G, let me get this
straight: I don’t have this album, and I don’t ever see myself buying it. I’ve
only heard of it on my multiple rounds of strolling Podium, whose
administrators need to be scolded for their insistent desire to play this music
on the background! Kenny G is, quite frankly, an uncreative cash cow who plays “jazz”
with little to no improvisation, forgettable arrangements and, more
importantly, zero aggression and zero risk. And no other albums make it more
apparent than this one. Trust me, I’ve heard plenty of Kenny G albums, yet I’ve
never heard of another that’s as badly done as this “greatest” holiday works,
save his Classics in the Key of G. The materials he chose are so tired,
so familiar, that I cannot imagine what went through to his head. What’s worse
is that he’s done absolutely nothing to either enhance or make his take at
least a little different from the traditions. I can play We Wish You A Merry
Christmas on piano, yet I’m not selling any records. And then people suck
up to Kenny G’s music thinking there’s something “deep” in this? Geez. One last
word: his My Favorite Things is absolutely banal, and it further proves
just how stuck up Kenny is for thinking he can outdo Coltrane (whose My
Favorite Things is way better). In truth, it’s like comparing Dan Brown to
Agatha Christie. Save your money and let this album remain in the elevator or
in some music-dilettante’s coffee shop. Rating: 0 out of 5.

This entry was posted on Monday, January 15th, 2007 at 12:43 am and is filed under Uncategorized. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.