Vol. 22 No. 9 September 1996

 

CADENCE MAGAZINE

 

REVIEW OF CREATIVE IMPROVISEO MUSIC

CHUCK ZEUREN

ZEUREN

MONAD 136

1-Blues Ball, 2-Si Senora, 3-It's Time, 4-Becky'sBallad, 5-Poo-Oh-DoOh, 6-One For H.C., 7-Let's Go Nuts, 8-Have You Met Miss Jones, 9-Caribe ... 53:01

Chuck Zeuren (d,perc); Kenny Hitchcock (ts 1-8, ss 9); Bill Washer (gtr)
Scott Lee (bs); Raphael Cruz (perc 2,7,9); Sam Turner (perc 6)
Recorded 1990, New Rochelle, NY.

I like sessions led by drummers. I especially like that certain feeling of energetic looseness as if he's said to the front line instruments, "I'll set up a groove then you guys play whatever you feel so long as you keep things moving!" You'll find that feeling imprinted on the music here, from the freely improvised duet between the tenor and drums to Zeuren's free funk original "Let's Go Nuts!". He's well supported in creating that feeling by the front line presence of Hitchcock, a regular in Louie Bellson's big bands. Aside from a stint in Lionel Hampton's orchestra and festival appearances in Europe, Zeuren has built his reputation and career.working mainly in the Big Apple. (One of his career experiences was as an educator in a state funded program teaching big band Jazz at the infamous Sing-Sing prison, which led me to wonder just how you tell a convicted killer he's the one murdering the arrangement?) Guitarist Washer and bassist Lee are likewise veteran New York players. There's something else that I like about drummer led dates that Zeuren does here.

Horn players and pianists can regularly exert influence on the choice and style of music they play. The drummer, by contrast, is obliged to play whatever it is that somebody else has picked. So when the choice is his by virtue of it being his date, I like to hear what kinds of things he'll pick to play. Zeuren has put together a good and interesting mix. There's Latin-bop and there's a standard. Washer contributes an original blues along with a richly colored tune with different instrumental shadings called "Caribe". With a few exceptions, like a Max Roach, when the drummer/leader brings a tune to the date it's often just a head for a blowing track. Zeuren provides three complete originals, co-wrote a fourth and co-arranged the rest. Testimony to their musical completeness can be heard from his fellow players. His theme to the medium tempo "It's Time" gives Lee a nice vehicle for an extended bass intro and solo as does "Beckys Ballad" for Hitchcock. Did you ever notice how we as listeners may differ widely in our opinion of horn players and pianists but virtually everybody likes the drummer? This album as a whole sounds like a get-together of musical friends and Zeuren's music has a nice friendly sound.

Paul B. Matthews

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