The Call by Frank Kimbrough

24 bit / 96k

It has been over four years since the passing of Frank Kimbrough, an incredible pianist, composer and educator. His loss left an unfillable void in the jazz scene of New York City and throughout the world. Fortunately, his lessons and music still live on in his students, peers and recordings. So, it is with great pleasure and pride that Sunnyside Records presents The Call, a collection of solo performances that were captured and later rediscovered by recording engineer Matt Balitsaris.

Kimbrough was an integral part of the New York jazz scene. He was a beloved friend and collaborator. He appeared in ensembles led by leaders as diverse and illustrious as Maria Schneider, Ben Allison, Ted Nash, Matt Wilson, Jay Anderson, and Kendra Shank, among many others. Kimbrough’s original compositions were as celebrated as his interpretations of standards and the jazz canon, for which he was highly regarded, especially after the release of his prodigious recording of the full Thelonious Monk oeuvre on Monk’s Dreams (Sunnyside, 2018).

Though he regularly led and recorded with ensembles of all sorts, Kimbrough was also respected as a remarkable piano soloist. As well as the occasional solo performance, Kimbrough recorded one solo album, Air (Palmetto, 2007). This makes the release of The Call especially welcome, as it is another program of solo piano playing on varied material, including beloved pieces by Duke Ellington and Dizzy Gillespie, along with the initial recordings of pieces that would become essential parts of Kimbrough’s original songbook.

Fortunately, the tapes were running when Kimbrough stepped into his favorite recording studio, Maggie’s Farm, in Buck’s County, Pennsylvania on July 19, 2010. Engineer Balitsaris captured a full afternoon’s worth of material, which he later unearthed for this release.

The program begins with a knotty version of Ellington’s “Angelica,” Kimbrough’s Monk-esque touch providing a unique vision of the composer’s well-known standard. Gillespie’s “Tin Tin Deo” is slowed into a breathtakingly beautiful ballad, delicate with a hint of the blues. This version of Kimbrough’s “The Call” provides the first recorded iteration of the piece, one that would become a staple in Kimbrough’s repertoire and be released on his 2014 Palmetto release, Quartet.

George Gershwin’s “I Loves You Porgy” is dramatically paced as Kimbrough allows each note to ring and the blues inflection to wash over the listener, while Kimbrough smoothly transforms Andrew Hill’s cerebral “From California with Love” into a heavenly ballad with a hint of an edge. Another tune that would appear on Quartet, Kimbrough’s “November” is a sullen but evocative piece that conjures a chilly walk over damp, fallen leaves.

Ellington is revisited on “Reflections in D,” a piece that Kimbrough had recorded with Kendra Shank in 2000. This delicately resonant version seems like a prayer, while Kimbrough’s approach to Gillespie’s “A Night In Tunisia” retains the original’s propulsive rhythm but with a playful push and pull in tempo. Kimbrough makes a suite of sorts out of Ellington’s “In a Sentimental Mood” as he explores variations of the melody, creating new themes and points of departure for improv. Lastly, the program ends with “Improvisation,” a spontaneously improvised piece that allows Kimbrough to really stretch, his creativity knowing no bounds on the keyboard that sweeps across.

Though Frank Kimbrough is no longer with us in the flesh, his legacy lives on in his music. His inspirational and musical gifts still fill fans and friends with light. The Call provides a welcome discovery and further proof of just what the brilliance that Kimbrough gave to the world.