West End Avenue -
Jeff Campbell - bass
John Hollenbeck - drums, percussion
John Wojciechowski - tenor saxophone, clarinet
Liner notes - by Todd Coolman
After over a decade of professional performing experience as a bassist, Jeff Campbell now adds this recorded debut as a leader to his estimable playing credentials. Born into a musical family, Jeff?s musical interests are eclectic. Ultimately, as he demonstrates in this recording, he is a bassist?s bassist. There Are a few essential qualities that I always listen for in a bassist: a warm, luscious, enveloping sound, good intonation that makes the sound of the instrument sing, a solid rhythmic feeling, judicious note choice, and an empathetic, supportive posture that allows the music of the moment to breathe effortlessly. Jeff is in that higher echelon of today?s bassists who has mastered these traits, and therefore the craft.
It is a special pleasure to hear him in this particular context, without the presence of a harmonic instrument. Jeff supplies the musical canvas that allows his fellows to ‘bob and weave? to their heart?s content. At the same time, he injects economical but powerful musical dialogue, void of cliché. The music is straightforward and sincere; from the heart. Adding to the music further as a composer, Jeff Campbell exemplifies the many facets that have become the way of the finest musicians of our time.
I sincerely hope you enjoy this recording as much as I have. It is reassuring to hear that the bass continues to be the foundation of music as we know it today. In Jeff Campbell?s hands, the constant evolution of the instrument is in good hands. I know that the next time I pick up the bass, I will certainly consider the great care Jeff has taken to tell his story and the high standard of excellence he has set forth for all of us to benefit from.
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From Allaboutjazz.com
By E.J. Iannelli
West End Avenue was recorded in March 2003, just a few months after bassist Jeff Campbell's session with Trio East that resulted in Stop-Start, and, like that slightly earlier session, it features no harmonic instrument. Only this time around trumpeter Clay Jenkins has been replaced by tenor saxophonist and clarinetist John Wojciechowski, and drummer Rich Thompson with John Hollenbeck.
The disc contains a mix of original compositions and songs by Irving Berlin (?How Deep Is the Ocean?), Mingus (?Goodbye Pork Pie Hat?) and Charlie Parker (?Cheryle? [sic]), with Campbell racking up the lion's share of originals and Hollenbeck and Wojciechowski meriting one track apiece. Regardless of composer, however, all of them are related in the trio's unique vocabulary, one that combines the idioms of post-bop, impressionism and African folk (which I suppose now falls into the rather all-encompassing ?world? genre).
On the sax, Wojciechowski has a confident, assertive sound that still comes across as buttery, even when he's springing into the shrieks of upper register and the honks of the lower. He achieves an appealing balance between hugging the melodic line and more fractured expressive drift, ?West End Avenue? and ?How Deep Is the Ocean? being two particularly good examples. Campbell bridges the span between melody and rhythm well when backing, and his moments in the spotlight are inventive and controlled. Not to diminish the role of the other two, it's Hollenbeck who really catapults this recording into the top tier, displaying a superhuman ability to be everywhere he needs to be at just the right time. His kit sounds extensive enough to cover a small town, and he uses it to its fullest, bringing a three-dimensional rhythm to these songs that is deeply textural, colorful and musical?"all the qualities one could ask of a drummer. The natural seamlessness of the trio's music-making belies the fact that prior to this session Hollenbeck and Wojciechowski had never met.
?Tone Poem for the Desert? has a sound-painting intro made all the more intriguing by Campbell's clever use of his bow to simulate the berimbau. The song slowly gains momentum, with Hollenbeck's percussion becoming ever more emphatic and focused. Campbell digs out a thick, propulsive bass line, and Wojciechowski gradually loses himself in dervish-like rapture. It's one of the disc's standouts. Unlike Bird's ?Cheryle,? the cover of Mingus' ?Goodbye Pork Pie Hat? isn't much of a leap away from the original, though both Wojciechowski and Campbell approach it with less solemnity. In addition to his professional role as associate professor of jazz studies and contemporary media at the Eastman School, Campbell has also played frequently with the Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra, and so a few pieces from this accomplished and often captivating album?"like the closer, ?Song for Ped??"wear their classical influences on their sleeves.
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From Bass Player
By John Goldsby
In the tradition of the great jazz trios, Jeff Campbell says this recording was ?inspired by Vernell Fournier and Israel Crosby?s rhythmic support with Ahmad Jamal.? Campbell teams up with reedman John Wojciechowski and eclectic drummer John Hollenbeck in a program that includes seven originals and three standards. The styles range from a miniature musical landscape on ?Tone Poem for the Desert? to the innovative arrangement of Charlie Parker?s ?Cheryle.? The music is serious without being pretentious ?" thoughtful and open, yet groovy and swinging. Campbell is a strong player with a classic upright sound, great intonation, and chops to spare.
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From Double Bassist
Hard bop, cool bossa, and full-on impressionism will invade your ears on this release of original compositions peppered with some new approaches to old standards. Following in jazz’s century-long tradition of being open to a wide array of musical influences, Campbell’s trio has a collective mind for the future as well as the past, for structure besides chaos, for inside harmonies that give way to the abstract, and for the blues as it might be sung by someone who has lived all over the world. This album is a sensitive and moving tribute to jazz of all times and places, that is intended not just for jazz lovers but for sound lovers of all kinds.
Take the first and title track, for example, an original by Campbell played in the style of the legendary Ahmad Jamal Trio. Hollenbeck and Campbell’s impression of Jamal’s bassist Israel Crosby and drummer Vernell Fournier is a lush and spacious rhythmic romp through history. Further into the album, Campbell stuns us again with an impressionist rendering of the African desert, where a soundscape is created by using the stick of the bow and tapping the strings, in imitation of an African percussion instrument known as the Berbimbau.
The playing is tight and the tunes are inspired, as in Campbell’s bossa “Lydia”, a graceful and thoughtful piece that will touch the soul with its beautiful imagery even while it forces the intellect to appreciate the band’s top-notch technical foundations and training. West End Avenue is recommended listening for those looking for new tonal colours on a “blue” canvas.
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From Cadence Magazine
By Stuart Kremsky
The understated vibe of bassist Jeff Campbell?s trio didn?t really grab me from the beginning, but as I listened more, I began to appreciate the band?s virtues. Among them are the general refusal to be predictable, an urgency in the rhythmic flow that makes you move, and an easygoing way of relating to one another that?s infectious.
Reedman John Wojciechowski, heard mostly on tenor saxophone, has an ?old? sound, rounded and unhurried with a smoothness that?s missing from most modern players. Drummer John Hollenbeck is invaluable throughout, playing sensitively and dynamically with a sort of relaxed urgency that works perfectly in these three-way conversations.
This is Jeff Campbell?s first outing as a leader after more than a decade of professional experience. He?s got a great tone, fast fingers, and sure articulation. It takes real chops to play the busy bass parts of ?Tone Poem for the Desert? for over seven minutes; Campbell handles it with no strain. Hollenbeck on brushes and Wojciechowski on tenor complete the picture for a winning performance. Campbell?s original ballad ?Lydia? is simple and affecting. Here the music really starts to dig in. The version of ?How Deep is the Ocean? is upbeat and as fresh as if the classic song had been written specially for this date. The superb groove and rapport continues with the slow drag of Goodbye Porkpie Hat? and a brief but jolly ride with Charlie Parker?s ?Cheryle.? The short ?Voice in the Wilderness? is an exercise in harmonic exploration by saxophonist Wojciechowski, an interesting in unresolved piece. The playful and relaxed ?A Wrecked Angle? and another ballad, this one a restrained and classical sounding line dedicated to Campbell?s wife featuring Wojciechowski on clarinet, concludes this warm and friendly program of excellent modern Jazz Improvisation. Worth seeking out.
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