March 5, 2018

  • Piano Jazz from Ron Paley

     The More You Know

    Ron Paley, piano.
    Big Round Records 8951
    Total Time: 50:03
    Recording:   ****/****
    Performance: ****/****

     

    We take a slight turn to the lighter side of music with this new jazz piano album featuring big band composer, arranger and performer Ron Paley.  He formed his own big band back in 1976 after playing with Buddy Rich and Woody Herman.  He was part of the latter band when they went on tour for a month with Frank Sinatra.  Of late, he and his big band have been performing across Canada with concerts of his own symphonic works played with the Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra.

    The album plays out like the solo albums of Dave Grusin, or an afternoon spent enjoying the stylings of Marian McPartland.  Here Paley explores a number of jazz styles and rhythms in infectious melodic constructions and rhythmic ideas that are part of concert-like solo works.  After a nice ballad-like opening “Theme” we move into a boogie woogie bass line in “U of M” and even some vocalized rhythmic scat which will recur in a later “Ballad Trilogy”.  “A Beautiful Soul” is an aptly named melody that has its roots in the American Songbook styles of the 1940s.  “P & Q” has an equally nice little tune, this time in waltz-time.  The rich harmonies here add to the often gorgeous arrival points as his melodic material unfolds.  Some of the selections are evidently from a Big Band musical Paley has been working on, Bring ‘Em Back, though these are not identified as such.

    There are some additional works on the album that are Paley’s jazzier takes on popular music from seemingly disparate genres (“Alone Together/Pretty Woman”) as well as two explorations of classical music for Tchaikovsky’s “Waltz of the Flowers” and the closing Chopin Prelude C-minor, Op. 28, no. 2 (the very one immortalized by Barry Manilow).  Paley’s rendition is pure magic here.

    Overall, this is really an excellent jazz piano album with plenty of fine new works to explore.  Paley proves to be a virtuosic pianist as well that one can certainly hear whether he is playing one of his own original compositions or launching off on an improvisatory exploration of a more familiar tune.  The perfect drive album, or album for just a relaxing afternoon of piano jazz.