JOHN SURMAN — John Surman, John Warren : The Brass Project (review)

JOHN SURMAN — John Surman, John Warren : The Brass Project album cover Album · 1993 · Progressive Big Band Buy this album from MMA partners
4/5 ·
Sean Trane
Some twenty years after their first collaboration Tales of The Algonquin, Surman and Warren come back with a second project, one that could’ve been written and played around the Algonquin piece, since most of the partakers in the present were already stalwarts of the London-scene in the 60’s & 70’s. A few things differentiates the two albums, not least the present’s boring sleeve design, but more important, the songwriting is shared between the two Johns (it was all Warren’s on Algonquin), and Warren directs or conducts but doesn’t play, and that outside them, only trombonist Griffiths participated on both albums. Indeed, if names like Henry Lowther (trumpet), Chris Laurence (bass), John Marshall (drums), Chris Pyne (tromb), are familiar 70’s names, none of them did play on the previous collab. Another difference is that Algonquin was Surman’s last album on the Deram label, and he’s been with the ECM label since, where the Brass Project is released in 92 (even if the project’s genesis dated from the early 80’s), and to be honest, it’s not all-that ECM-like an album.

Soooooo, if Surman composes half the tracks on the present project, he also plays all the woodwind instruments (sax, bass clarinet, etc.) but also tickles the piano (not too present, though). Opening on two Surman compositions (Returning Exile and Coastline), the mood oscillates between fairly standard-y jazz (almost big band-like) and more ECM-type of post-70’s fusion. The 13-mins two parts Warren-penned The New One reinforces the big band feel, but it’s not like it is an Ellington cliché at all. Warren’s next “tune” Special Motive has an intimate slow-paced mood where the bass clarinet and bass trombone dominate lazily. In response, Surman counters with an equally-slow Wider Vision intro, but it slowly develops into a jumpy brassy affair, where Marshall drums up a storm, like only he can. A splendid affair! In contrast, Warren answers back with Silent Lake, where Surman plays a crystal-sounding slow piano, but the slow big band beast lurks below the sleeping waters. The album closes on two-Johns collegial compositions, first with the Mellstrum Quire seguing Tantrum Clangey veering at times dissonant; and finally the Shadow piece, which bears its name well, with the sombre dissonant wind instruments growlings and screechings.

Somewhat a different (more standard-y) ECM-product than you might be expecting, The Brass Project is one of my fave 90’s jazz album and might just fit in my top-10 albums of that label. So beware, if you’re an 80’s ECM buff, you might just be in for surpise.
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