Disc of the day: 11-11-09

John Hicks: I Remember You (High Note HCD 7191)
I remember first hearing pianist John Hicks in the David Murray band. There, he revelled in the role of contrast to Murray, the quieter, contained and dignified power of his solos just perfect as a foil to the saxophonist’s boisterousness, bravura and bravado.

Of course he also played a vital role in the bands of others, too, like Art Blakey, Betty Carter and Bobby Watson, and would later become a stalwart of the late night New York club scene, and Bradley’s in particular.

But this is Hicks in early 2006, playing a solo gig in New Hope, Pennsylvania, just weeks before his death, and working his insightful way through some standards. The title track is an 11-minute masterpiece which takes the listener from quiet reflection up to a dancing groove with some Monkish, punctuated passages, and a little Teddy Wilson in there, too, with a gorgeous two-handed brief return to the tune at the seven-minute mark.

All Of You, Solar, Everytime We Say Goodbye, Upper Manhattan Medical Group – a lot of great jazz tunes with lot of history get the Hicks treatment and feel more freshly burnished as a result.

A great valedictory statement from one the lesser known but nevertheless great jazz pianists of the late 20th century.