THE HONOR ROLL

Quote of the Month

Bill Evans Trio - New CD: "Momentum" -- worth every penny!

Bill Evans: Momentum (Limetree Records, Germany).
We need to thank our friend Rob Rijneke, who lovingly helped put this release together. He co-produced the tapes, got the clearances, communicated with the Estate and the musicans, and compiled a beautiful 2-CD package with great liner notes as well. Win Hinkle, Bill's friends Brian Hennesey and Bill Zavatsky as well as Dr. Rijneke all weigh in with comments.

Recorded in February 1972, the recording was taped back then by pianist Jan Warnjes in The Netherlands who later digitized them as well. The sound is amazingly warm and authentic with great balance.. You feel like your in the 2nd row middle section in the audience. We get a very intellectually curious, glowing Bill Evans --searching, and finding. We get an enormously lyrical and sensitive Eddie Gomez, smartly ingratiating himself inside the music like he was Bill's "third hand". We hear a magnificent Marty Morell, young and inventive and fresh. Everything just gels beautifully. The trio had a great audience and obviously an inspired night.

It's a warm and a giving offering, whether swinging or at lush balladry. Standard early seventies repertoire is played, with tasty versions of Bill's own "Sugar Plum", "Turn Out the Stars" and Re:Person I Knew" as well as Elsa, Quiet Now, My Romance and other winners. But there is magic in these grooves that is either absent sometimes, or not as prominent in the many other recordings of this particular trio. This is an exception to all that.Here's what Downbeat magazine said:

At a concert in the Netherlands on Feb. 4, 1972, the trio drew heavily on an established repertoire of tunes, such as “Emily,” which they extend further than they had four years earlier. Their Dutch set list also included four of Evans’ compositions, including his lovely “Sugar Plum” and glorious “The Two Lonely People.” It’s thrilling to hear this trio get aggressive: Evans continues in his quiet determination to challenge ideas of where the pulse should be, Gomez sounds authoritatively forceful on “Emily” and Morell is equally dynamic on “My Romance.” Pianist Jan Warntjes recorded this concert, which sounds as vivid as if it were taped last week.

This album was nominated for the Preis der Deutschen Schallplattenkritik (German Record Critics Award) November 2012:

After lots of listening and very careful consideration, I'll take the risk and announce that I believe this performance of the Evans-Gomez-Morrell trio to be probably its finest recording .I believe it's that good. Spend the money. It's all you hoped for.

---

Cool new stuff from the Netherlands

Our friend Rob Rijneke from the Netherlands has some great new material there on his website. First you'll want to see his unique BILL EVANS TRIO TIMELINE, where you can check each bassist and drummer who ever worked with Bill and when.

Next up, there's brand new commentary and reflections by Nennette Evans, much of it personal and revealing. Rob has a gorgeous site and all his new material just adds to our knowledge and exceitement about Bill. He too keeps the legacy alive. Don't miss out.

 

---

---

Bill Evans -The Complete Catalog/Chronology of Recordings

A rich collection of data, arranged chronologically, of Bill Evans' recording history. Dates, sidemen, tunes played and other personnel, etc.

---

Download issues of the "Letter From Evans" series of newsletters here

An incredible resource: between 1989 -1994, a newsletter dedicated solely to the music and the life of Bill Evans was published by well-known Evans historian and bassist Win Hinkle (Those who have appreciated Bill's work since that time may have seen Win's name included in both the Peter Pettinger and Keith Shadwick books) "Letter From Evans" was available by subscription only back then, but now Win has made all twenty-six issues available online in .pdf files-- and it's all free!

During it's five-year run, LFE featured Evans news, album reviews, commentary, analysis, transcriptions and many exclusive interviews done mostly by Win with some folks you just might have heard of: Keith Jarrett, Marc Johnson, Steve Allen, Earl Zindars, Joe LaBarbera, Henry Mancini, Chuck Israels, Mundell Lowe, Jimmy Rowles, Denny Zeitlin, BILL himself and many others!

A few of those who contributed articles or reviews included musicians like Jack Reilly, Kenny Werner, Hal Galper, Richie Bierach, Ron Nethercutt and your humble correspondent, Jan Stevens. Obviously, if you're an Evans aficianado, or even just a serious jazz fan, you want to see this stuff.

 

---

NOTES, DISCLAIMERS AND LEGALESE:

NOTE: The textual information and HTML within is proprietary content and cannot be copied digitally, electronically or otherwise for use on the Web or other media without permission. If you wish to use any content here, (Other than brief quotes or paragrapgh use under the Fair Use Doctrine) or have a BLOG, simply email us for permission before copying reviews and or other materials. Thank you.

This tribute websiteis not associated directly with the Estate and is strictluy is intended for educational and informational purposes only. It is a not-for-profit endeavor and we do not solicit nor accept any contributions, nor do we sell any products, music transcriptions, ad space, or other Bill Evans- related or jazz-related services whatsoever. This website is not affiliated with any record company or publisher, nor with the Estate of Bill Evans, which is represented by Steven Lowy, Esq. Any ads or logos to featured jazz sites are purely promotional as a recommended site, and are unsolicited and done for free.

Also: many musicians and fans have contacted us and asked about obtaining Bill Evans piano transcriptions. Sorry, but we do not provide these for various copyright reasons. The webmaster (a pianist) has studied many Evans solo transcriptions, and various transcriptions by both amateurs and professionals are available on the Web or at the usual online retail outlets.. Many are able to be obtained from TRO Music, Inc., distributed by Hal Leonard, Inc., and other authorized companies which pay licensing fees and have permissions to reproduce original musical compositions and transcriptions. We kindly ask that you please do not email to ask "What album is "[whatever song] on?". Our discography of Bill Evans' recording history (1956 through 1980) --though in need of some updating for recent reissues -- gives as much detailed and complete information as possible. Thank you

---