Jeno Somlai approaches the keyboard with a percussionist's sensibilityrhythm, rhythm, rhythmhere on his debut disc, Let It Go. That's not a surprise, given that the Milwaukee-based musician is primarily a drummer who took up the piano just four years ago. The disc opens with Stevie Wonder's "Golden Lady," sounding sort of like Art Blakey's arrangement for "A Night in Tunisia." The song churns along for eight minutes of hard-driving Latin grooves, lots of percussion and a percussive pianoSomlai'sbehind tenor sax and trumpet. At one point, about six minutes into the tune, the group goes into a percussion-only mode, a rolling, rollicking, rumbing knockabout, reminding me of Hugh Masekela's touring band, when everybody pushes their primary instrument aside and gets into the beat.
It's an infectious sound, and the opener sets the tone, though there are a couple of more mainstream tunes: "Libby," apparently the first song Somlai wrote, after getting into keyboardsand it has a wonderful, lovely melody; and the title tune, with the leader working some darker tones on the Fender Rhodes.
"Se Le Ve" drives hard, congas and clave bubbling along on a rolling boil behind the bright horn work; and on "Have You Met Miss Jones" (Rodgers and Hart), Somlai's drums and Robert Figueroa's congas present a smooth, cool, burbling flow of rhythm. Wayne Shorter's "One By One" features congas, timbales, bongos, drums, and Somlaivery focused, not over-reaching, bringing a perussive shine to the sound with his relatively simple rhythmic piano mode.
Jeno Somlai--piano, Fender Rhodes, drums, percussion; Jamie Breiwick--trumpet; Mike Plog--trumpet; Scott Van Domelan--tenor sax; Steve Einerson--piano; Doug Ebert--bass; Robert Figueroa--congoas, percussion; Dave Bayles--drums, percussion; Hector "Vivo' Rodriguez--timbalesUlisis Santiago--congas; Mark Davis--piano
Album information
Title: Let It Go
| Year Released: 2004
| Record Label: Unknown label
All About Jazz has been a pillar of jazz since 1995, championing it as an art form and, more importantly, supporting the musicians who create it. Our enduring commitment has made "AAJ" one of the most culturally important websites of its kind, read by hundreds of thousands of fans, musicians and industry figures every month.
You Can Help
To expand our coverage even further and develop new means to foster jazz discovery and connectivity we need your help. You can become a sustaining member for a modest $20 and in return, we'll immediately hide those pesky ads plus provide access to future articles for a full year. This winning combination will vastly improve your AAJ experience and allow us to vigorously build on the pioneering work we first started in 1995. So enjoy an ad-free AAJ experience and help us remain a positive beacon for jazz by making a donation today.
We sent a confirmation message to . Look for it, then click the link to activate your account. If you don’t see the email in your inbox, check your spam, bulk or promotions folder.
African Jazz Ambient / New Age Beyond Jazz Electronica Free Improv / Avant-Garde Fringes of Jazz Lounge / Exotica Modern Jazz Straight-ahead (Bop, Hard bop, Cool)