Young Artists on the Verge Of Greatness
Mar 07 '01
The Bottom Line Michael Cain, Pheeroan akLaff and Richard Reid are three great artists you may not know. Track down their CDs with Jack DeJohnette, Geri Allen and other artists that you do.
Monday is not a usual night for great Jazz in Los Angeles. Every other day of the week there are usually two or three things going on at various times and places, but Monday is usually dead. So I was as surprised as I was happy when Catalina's Bar and Grill hosted the Michael Cain Trio on Monday, February 26th.
Michael Cain is an outstanding young pianist who has performed and recorded with Jack DeJohnette's Special Edition and Ravi Coltrane, among others. His trio consisted of his frequent musical companion and fellow Brooklynite Pheeroan akLaff on Drums and the local stalwart Richard Reid on the bass. AkLaff has recorded with Oliver Lake and Geri Allen, among others, and Reid is frequently found on various stages here in Los Angeles backing the likes of Pharaoh Sanders and other prestigious visitors.
The crowd included flutist James Newton, and Cain introduced him from the stage before beginning the set, thanking him for giving him a chance to play in his band when he was still unproven, saying that by allowing Cain to play with them he would have the opportunity to weed himself out. Newton acknowledged and laughed off Cain's attempt at self-effacement.
The group then began with a gospel tune that was far removed from Cain's more pensive and ethereal work with DeJohnette and Ravi Coltrane. The set included originals from both Cain and akLaff that ranged from gospel and blues to straight ahead jazz and world music and Cain displayed a tremendous stylistic fluidity throughout. One particular highlight was akLaff's Japanese-tinged "Children of Okinawa."
A few words need to be said about Pheeroan akLaff. A prodigiously talented and occasionally overpowering drummer, he understands not only the sound of the drums, but the visual appeal of the drum solo. His solos and demeanor during them displayed a just restrained fury that at times brought to mind rock drummer Keith Moon as much as, say, Elvin Jones and certainly more than, say, Billy Higgins or Max Roach. He had this unique manner of playing very fast and furious but looking as though he was barely moving. In a way, he could be the antithesis of pianist Cain. Where Cain's piano tends to hover gracefully on, above and around the rest of the trio, akLaff's drums build to aggressively dominate the sound of the music. Somehow, though, it all seems to work out--the two contrasting styles balance rather than clash.
Certainly, on this evening at least, Reid served as a moderating influence between the two. His bass lines were rugged, yet fluid and his habit of singing (as pianists often do) along with his solos added an extra emphasis to them. The group closed their set with a cover of McCoy Tyner's "Blues Power," a good choice as it tied together the various streams of music they had crossed and linked their music to its roots. Cain and akLaff are innovative young players that figure to gain in stature as the decade wears on; all three are major artists deserving wider recognition.
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