Ahmad Jamal, hailed as the quintessential Hard Bop pianist in every right, once again asserts the well earned accolade on “Blue Moon” from as he takes us from Bird to Broadway and Hollywood on a single disc. His singular touch is heard from the very first note on Autumn Rain. The force that propels him through the sonic universe is ever present in his voicings and signature phrasing.
Ahmad Jamal is one of music’s most soulful and inspiring pianists. The selections on this disc cannot hold him to an aesthetic that is dominated by the interpretation of standards and yet his re imagining of classics like Laura and Invitation make one revel in the joy of hearing your favorite tunes played by Ahmad Jamal.
This production has a hypnotic live feel to it that transports you to a second set at the Village Vangaurd when the band is already warmed up and loose. The title track Blue Moon is a percussive tour de force balanced by a lilting almost waltzing bridge like the moon coming out from behind a Brooklyn water tower, an unexpected yet beautiful take on this timeless classic. Ahmad’s left hand seems to dance with the bass player at times. Gypsy’s poignant intro almost reminds one of a Billy Eckstine intro. This treatment of a broadway jewel is Adams rib in the gifted hands of Jamal.
No better tribute befits a broadway song than to have a Jazz master like Ahmad Jamal unlock it’s secrets. Invitation is one of those melodies that continues to give up it’s mysteries to Jamal even into the bridge. Rolling like it’s own cipher. In “Morning Mist ” he gives a nod to Diz and Chano Pozo, the founders of Afro Cuban Jazz with a pedal very much akin to the vamp on Manteca. It is a stroll through an exotic East Harlem on a summers eve. Jamal and his accomplices bring to light the flame of Hard Bop and Soul Jazz while still grooving on funk beats on “This is The Life”, Jamal is not out to prove that he is still hip or that he can roll with the latest trends in music, but displaying a dominion over the groove and Soul all of contemporary black music traces from.
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