Beyond Brooklyn

Editorial Reviews
Amazon.com
Dedicated to the spirit and music of flutist Herbie Mann, who died in 2003, Beyond Brooklyn documents a meeting of Mann and alto saxophonist Phil Woods more than 50 years after they first played together at Tony's Bar in Brooklyn in 1951. It's a joyous reunion, with the pair touching on classic bases in the jazz repertoire, including Oscar Pettiford's "Bohemia After Dark," a tune they played when they first met, and Charlie Parker's "Au Privave." Both mellowed through the years, with Mann's flute growing more lyrical and less piping and Woods's alto becoming warmer, less driven, and less intense. The results are consistently engaging, a deeply involving dialogue on a half-century of jazz experience. It's a CD of exalted moments: Mann is wonderfully airy on Randy Weston's "Little Niles," Woods sweetly liquid on clarinet on Duke Ellington's "Azure" and lush yet keening on Billy Strayhorn's "Blood Count." They're complemented throughout by fine support that includes trombonist Jay Ashby and pianist Alain Mallet. --Stuart Broomer

Beyond Brooklyn, Music, Herbie Mann, Phil Woods, Bop, Jazz, Mainstream Jazz, Pop, Standards

Average customer rating:

A perfect send-off

Beyond Brooklyn
Herbie Mann , and Phil Woods
Manufacturer: Mcg Jazz
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

Bebop General | Bebop | Jazz | Styles | Music
General | Jazz | Styles | Music
Traditional Vocal Pop | Broadway & Vocalists | Styles | Music
Similar Items:

Phil Woods and Carl Saunders Play Henry Mancini

This Is How I Feel About Quincy

With Antonio Carlos Jobim

The Best of Herbie Mann

Memphis Underground

ASIN: B0002IQHF2
Release Date: 2004-07-27

We Will Meet Again
Alvin G.
Azure
Bohemia After Dark
Caminhos Cruzados
Au Privave
Another Shade Of Blues
Sir Charles Duke
Jelek
Blood Count
Little Niles
Time After Time

Amazon.com

Dedicated to the spirit and music of flutist Herbie Mann, who died in 2003, Beyond Brooklyn documents a meeting of Mann and alto saxophonist Phil Woods more than 50 years after they first played together at Tony's Bar in Brooklyn in 1951. It's a joyous reunion, with the pair touching on classic bases in the jazz repertoire, including Oscar Pettiford's "Bohemia After Dark," a tune they played when they first met, and Charlie Parker's "Au Privave." Both mellowed through the years, with Mann's flute growing more lyrical and less piping and Woods's alto becoming warmer, less driven, and less intense. The results are consistently engaging, a deeply involving dialogue on a half-century of jazz experience. It's a CD of exalted moments: Mann is wonderfully airy on Randy Weston's "Little Niles," Woods sweetly liquid on clarinet on Duke Ellington's "Azure" and lush yet keening on Billy Strayhorn's "Blood Count." They're complemented throughout by fine support that includes trombonist Jay Ashby and pianist Alain Mallet. --Stuart Broomer

Customer Reviews:

A perfect send-off.......2004-09-12

A confession: Jazz flute isn't my thing. Nor is Herbie Mann. Nor, generally, is Phil Woods. But you know what? There's some deep magic going down here.

This is one of those enchanting sessions where everything comes together. Yes, Herbie Mann is practically on his deathbed, but he still plays his butt off (How do they do THAT?). And Phil Woods has more than mellowed over the years; he's become positively rich, smooth, and melodious--without losing any of his substance. Quite a feat--and entirely worth hearing.

I'm blown away by this session, which strikes me as rather massively unlikely, although, if one follows jazz closely, perhaps not all that unusual.

What can happen is this: Guys who've labored in the jazz trenches for, in this case, more than a century combined, sometimes just reach critical mass. If you can serendipitously land on just the right kind of session, voila! Transcendence.

This band--Alain Mallet, piano; Jay Ashby, trombone; Marty Ashby, guitar, Dwayne Dolphin, bass; Paul Socolow, bass; Roger Humphries, drums; and Ricky Sebastian, drums--completely tunes in and listens with consummate sensitivity, resulting in a disc of both grand beauty and near-infinite empathy.

And that's why I love jazz: The unexpected regularly happens, and we are blessed beyond comprehension.

Music: