Bruce Arnold Art of Blues
Featuring:
Bruce Arnold — Guitar
Dean Johnson — Bass
Tony Moreno —Drums
Bruce Arnold kicks it up a notch with “Art of the
Blues” (MSK 157)
Great musicians have been doing their own take on the blues since the
form was created, and now Bruce Arnold joins their company with Art of
the Blues. Arnold has exhibited astonishing versatility with his
various projects, tackling pieces as disparate as Olivier Messiaen’s
“Quartet for the End of Time” and Native American chants. He is best
known however, for his explorations into the application of 12-tone
theory in jazz improvisation. Arnold here applies a similar
intellectual rigor to the 12 tracks that are by turns lyrical, spare,
haunting and always intriguing.
As Bruce explains it: “In Art of the Blues I have applied the
structural rhythmic and harmonic ideas that I have been working with
over the past several years to the blues form. These structures deal
with small three note groups and the superimposition of time fields
over a basic pulse. I’ve used the unit of a half step and a minor
3rd as my motif, and composed twelve blues, one in each key.
You’ll also hear some fun with time signatures and the use of a dotted
quarter note as a vehicle for multiple time layering.”
Joining Bruce on this bracing set and negotiating the tricks and turns
are stalwarts Tony Moreno on drums and Dean Johnson on upright bass.
Mr. Moreno is featured on almost every tune; his stellar drum solos are
filled with layered time improvisations and endless creativity. “It was
a conscious decision on my part to feature Tony on all these tunes”
says Bruce “ I wanted to showcase the many types of time manipulations
that we have been exploring over the past few years.” Time
juxtapositions abound, with a G Blues 30 bar in 3/4 in with 5 measure
phrases, a D Blues 18 bar form in 5/4, an A Blues 15 bar form in 7/4,
an E Blues 12 Bar form in 9/4, and a B Blues 24 Bar form in 4/4.
And although Bruce’s composition is forward thinking, his chordal
accompani- iment style throughout Art of the Blues conscientiously
harkens back to the roots of Rhythm and Blues guitar. All these
elements combine to create a collection of tunes that while sounding
like a traditional jazz guitar CD also presents a personal new approach
and direction for the blues.
You can also digitally download this CD at: Art of the
Blues Digital Download
Below are a few excerpts from this CD:
Cat
Feet-
013
Blues
in
C
Castles-
013
Blues
in
G
InDifferent
013
Blues
in D
In
7
were
3 013 Blues in A
In
and
Out
013 Blues in E
3
and
Fro
013 Blues in B
Sassy
013
Blues
in Gb
Hocket
013
Blues
in Db
Dark
Matter
013
Blues in Ab
Maze
013
Blues
in Eb
Inquistive
013
Blues
in Bb
Down
Home
013
Blues in F
Reviews:
“Arnold is a fiery yet thoughtful soloist. His compelling
compositions are built upon fragmented swing vamps, soaring opuses and
animated thematic developments. In effect, the band rockets
skyward, hovers back to a plateau, and morph sizzling dialogues into
untraditional blues grooves.”
Glenn Astarita
JazzReview.com
“…a refreshing redirection for the blues.”
Robert Silverstein
—MWE3.com
” Listening to this album is different than listening to other
albums because of the analytical components that are the building
blocks of these tunes.”
—Richard Henry, Worldwide-jazz-online
“… a personal new approach and direction for the blues. ”
—Laurie Monk, truthinshredding.com
… this is a solid example of power trio blues that charts it’s
own course.”
Chris Spector midwestrecord.com
“Art of the Blues, which features blues compositions written
in all 12 keys, is more traditional in nature, but still maintains the
highly creative and emotionally intense playing that Arnold brings to
any musical situation, no matter the style or genre he is playing in.”
—Matt Warnock Guitar
International
“Heady stuff it is, but proof that the blues not only can take
experimentation,
it demands it. And Bruce (Almighty) Arnold is the man to take it beyond
bounds.”
—Bob Gish Jazz Insider
Magazine
“Arnold does something very worthwhile here. From the level of
guitar art and ensemble chemistry, this one has it! Recommended.”
—Grego Applegate Edwards Gapplegate
Guitar and Bass Blog
Bruce Arnold—$14.99
Item#: MSK-157
Status: In stock, ships in 24 hours.
Order Information:
To
purchase
this
CD
please
use
the
shopping cart below.