By Ric Bang
Buy CD: Per Sempre
Bassist Eddie Gomez, born in
Puerto Rico, emigrated to New York with his family at an early age. He
began to play the double bass when he only 11, while a student in the New York
City school system. Two years later, he was attending the NYC High School
of Music, and he eventually graduated from Juilliard.
He quickly became a key
element in the jazz world; it’s difficult to find a name artist he hasn’t
played with. He’s best known for his association with Bill Evans; Gomez was a
member of that trio for 11 years, and the group won two Grammy Awards during
his tenure.
Gomez has been playing and
touring with his own groups for a number of years; he won another Grammy in
2010, for Best Instrumental Album (Duets).
Per Sempre,
although just released, was recorded during a tour in Italy in the winter of
2009, with a quintet. The combo members included Marco Pignataro on tenor and
soprano sax, Matt Marvuglio on flute, Teo Ciavarella on piano, and Massimo
Manzi on drums. The album set includes three compositions by Gomez, two by
Pignataro, one each from the flautist and pianist, and the beautiful old
standard “Stella by Starlight.”
This is “classical”
jazz; it won’t get your feet tapping or fingers snapping, but it will satisfy
your soul. Gomez was one of the first bassists to demonstrate that the instrument
could produce complex musical lines that were equal to those of reed and
brass horns, and solos that were just as dazzling. He and his compatriots here
present some of the most beautiful stuff I’ve heard in a long time.
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