Lyric and thoughtful, pianist Bill Evans proved an urbane bridge between the early bop style of Bud Powell and playful funk of Horace Silver, and the later, modern approach of pianists like Herbie Hancock, Chick Corea, and Keith Jarrett (indeed, Jarrett went as far as to record with Evans's backup band of drummer Paul Motian and bassist Gary Peacock). Evans's second album as a leader, Portrait in Jazz combines a pair of originals--"Blue in Green" and "Peri's Scope"--with a handful of show tunes and standards, including a version of "Someday My Prince Will Come" that pre-dates Miles Davis's adaptation. With a preference for irregular phrasing and a taste for unusual chord spellings, Evans was frequently able to recast old chestnuts and tired warhorses into new gems and spirited charges, as he does here with "Witchcraft," "Spring Is Here," and "When I Fall in Love." And although he recorded in many different formats throughout his career, including duets with himself, the power and beauty of Evans's trios helped him lay a special claim to that grouping. --Fred Goodman
Portrait in Jazz,Bill Evans,Ojc,Jazz,Pop
Jazz Music:
- Purpose of Soul
- Reference Point
- Rex Stewart and the Ellingtonians
- Ron Kearns Live at Montpelier [Live]
- Round Midnight and Other Jazz Classics
- S.E.V.A.
- Shawangunk
- Six Fuchs
- Six String Santa
- Snapshot
Jazz Music
Get Tough: The Best Of The Del-Lords
Mussorgsky: Pictures at an Exhibition; Une plaisanterie; Une larme; Scherzo; Intermezzo; Gopak
Max Lifchitz Plays American Piano Music
Mohala Hou - Music Of The Hawaiian Renaissance
New Jazz Conceptions [Import] [Original recording remastered]