SPECTRUM ROAD
''SPECTRUM ROAD''
JUNE 4 2012
RECORDING DATE: FEBRUARY 9 TO 13 2011
55:51
1 Vuelta Abajo 5:25
2 There Comes a Time 4:17
3 Coming Back Home
Jan Hammer 4:36
4 Where
John McLaughlin 12:36
5 An T-Eilan Muileach
Traditional 4:28
6 Vashkar
Carla Bley 5:47
7 One Word
John McLaughlin 4:14
8 Blues for Tillmon
8 Cindy Blackman / Jack Bruce / John Medeski / Vernon Reid 5:36
9 Allah Be Praised
Larry Young 4:06
10 Wild Life 4:46
Jack Bruce - bass & vocals
John Medeski - organ, mellotron
Vernon Reid - guitar
Cindy Blackman Santana - drums & vocal
REVIEW
by Thom Jurek
Spectrum Road is a jazz-rock supergroup featuring bassist Jack Bruce, guitarist Vernon Reid, drummer Cindy Blackman-Santana, and organist John Medeski that formed as a tribute to the inspiration and music of Tony Williams' pioneering Lifetime group (of which Bruce was a member). In the process of playing Lifetime's music as a project, they became a bona fide band. All but two of these cuts are from Lifetime's catalog. The set begins with the scorcher "Vuelta Abajo," from 1970's Turn It Over album. All four members come storming out of the gate on a syncopated, intense series of riffs and stops. Blackman-Santana, a Williams disciple, plays furiously with countless rolls and fills yet never drops her sense of groove. She pushes hard at Bruce's bassline while Medeski washes it all with a counter pulse and Reid takes it over into the red zone. This is excess at its level best. The hippest thing is that not only does Bruce keep that insane pace, he revels in it and works with Blackman-Santana to keep the groove funky and weird. She takes the vocal on the spacey, 12-minute "Where," which builds via her rolls and Medeski's abstract painterly touches into a true freewheeling jam with Reid and Bruce going head to head. The group interplay on "Vashkar" (written by Carla Bley, and originally appeared on 1969's Emergency) is a manic showcase for Medeski and Reid, but it's the rhythm section that keeps moving the track further onto the ledge. Spectrum Road honors Williams' example by taking real chances with his music. The way they break down "There Comes a Time" ( from 1971's Ego) with Bruce's bluesy vocals holding the ground firm under the band's improvising moves it from a somewhat staid open modal blues into something more textured, aggressive, and expansive. Reid's jazz chops on "Coming Back Home" walk a line between swing and Hendrixian blues, as Medeski swells and feeds his every line. Reid's and Blackman-Santana's rock strut on "Wild Life" would be nearly processional were it not for Bruce's and Medeski's deeply funky undercurrent. Spectrum Road's self-titled debut delivers in full on the supergroup promise; in addition, they provide the kind of forward-looking tribute that a pioneer like Williams truly deserves.
ALBUM INFO
By Palmetto Records
Spectrum Road is a groundbreaking collaboration between four giants of modern music: Jack Bruce, Vernon Reid, John Medeski and Cindy Blackman Santana. The collaboration was born from a shared passion for the music of legendary drummer Tony Williams.
“To be able to play and record in this band alongside three of the most creative and stellar musicians in the world is a longtime dream come true,” states Vernon Reid. “The idea for Spectrum Road first came about in 2001 and it was the ongoing belief in the kind of record we knew we could make together that made it come to fruition.”
Spectrum Road opens the ten-track effort with a blistering take on the jazz-rock barnburner "Vuelta Abajo." It's apparent from the get-go that this is no mere exercise in super-group frivolity, but a deeply attuned band speaking a rarefied improvisational language. As the recording unfolds, there's a primal urgency to the performances that ranges from the meditative beauty of "Where" to the searing intensity of "Allah B Praised." Each of these four iconoclasts play to the peak of their musical powers, yet ultimately achieve a whole greater than the sum of their individual parts. Jack Bruce's bass work anchors Spectrum Road, while he also adds vocals to three songs, including the album's centerpiece, a spellbinding version of the classic "There Comes A Time." Vernon Reid delivers one of the most inspired performances of his career. Particularly worth noting is his patient and slow-burning guitar work on "Blues For Tillmon" and a spitfire six-string barrage on "Vashkar." John Medeski shifts tonal colors throughout the ten tracks with flourishes of organ and mellotron. He brings a hefty dose of retro funk to the soaring album closer "Wild Life." As Spectrum Road's cornerstone, drummer Blackman dictates the flow, working in free time, juxtaposing delicate cymbal work against monstrous beats and fearlessly steering the quartet through a deluge of razor sharp turns.
"The band takes the electrifying music of Tony Williams as its starting point and turns it into something totally its own”, says Reid. “There's a vibe from end to end, a certain type of force and ambiance that I’ve never experienced before as an artist."
Spectrum Road is named for one of the incendiary tracks on the original Tony Williams Lifetime album, but as these four musicians demonstrate on their debut recording, this isn’t a tribute band. After making rock history with Eric Clapton and Ginger Baker in Cream, legendary British bassist Jack Bruce joined the Lifetime for two records thus serving as Spectrum Road's direct connection to their muse. The group is artfully rounded out with famed guitarist Vernon Reid, of Living Colour, and multi-keyboardist John Medeski, one-third of the juggernaut Medeski, Martin & Wood. Made famous by her ten plus years backing Lenny Kravitz, Cindy Blackman Santana has distinguished herself as an impressively versatile player who’s as comfortable on post-bop sessions with Joe Henderson and Wallace Roney as she is touring with pop stars like Kravitz and husband Carlos Santana. The formidable lineup of Spectrum Road assures the legacy of Tony Williams lives on, and clearly qualifies as a major 2012 music event.
''SPECTRUM ROAD''
JUNE 4 2012
RECORDING DATE: FEBRUARY 9 TO 13 2011
55:51
1 Vuelta Abajo 5:25
2 There Comes a Time 4:17
3 Coming Back Home
Jan Hammer 4:36
4 Where
John McLaughlin 12:36
5 An T-Eilan Muileach
Traditional 4:28
6 Vashkar
Carla Bley 5:47
7 One Word
John McLaughlin 4:14
8 Blues for Tillmon
8 Cindy Blackman / Jack Bruce / John Medeski / Vernon Reid 5:36
9 Allah Be Praised
Larry Young 4:06
10 Wild Life 4:46
Jack Bruce - bass & vocals
John Medeski - organ, mellotron
Vernon Reid - guitar
Cindy Blackman Santana - drums & vocal
REVIEW
by Thom Jurek
Spectrum Road is a jazz-rock supergroup featuring bassist Jack Bruce, guitarist Vernon Reid, drummer Cindy Blackman-Santana, and organist John Medeski that formed as a tribute to the inspiration and music of Tony Williams' pioneering Lifetime group (of which Bruce was a member). In the process of playing Lifetime's music as a project, they became a bona fide band. All but two of these cuts are from Lifetime's catalog. The set begins with the scorcher "Vuelta Abajo," from 1970's Turn It Over album. All four members come storming out of the gate on a syncopated, intense series of riffs and stops. Blackman-Santana, a Williams disciple, plays furiously with countless rolls and fills yet never drops her sense of groove. She pushes hard at Bruce's bassline while Medeski washes it all with a counter pulse and Reid takes it over into the red zone. This is excess at its level best. The hippest thing is that not only does Bruce keep that insane pace, he revels in it and works with Blackman-Santana to keep the groove funky and weird. She takes the vocal on the spacey, 12-minute "Where," which builds via her rolls and Medeski's abstract painterly touches into a true freewheeling jam with Reid and Bruce going head to head. The group interplay on "Vashkar" (written by Carla Bley, and originally appeared on 1969's Emergency) is a manic showcase for Medeski and Reid, but it's the rhythm section that keeps moving the track further onto the ledge. Spectrum Road honors Williams' example by taking real chances with his music. The way they break down "There Comes a Time" ( from 1971's Ego) with Bruce's bluesy vocals holding the ground firm under the band's improvising moves it from a somewhat staid open modal blues into something more textured, aggressive, and expansive. Reid's jazz chops on "Coming Back Home" walk a line between swing and Hendrixian blues, as Medeski swells and feeds his every line. Reid's and Blackman-Santana's rock strut on "Wild Life" would be nearly processional were it not for Bruce's and Medeski's deeply funky undercurrent. Spectrum Road's self-titled debut delivers in full on the supergroup promise; in addition, they provide the kind of forward-looking tribute that a pioneer like Williams truly deserves.
ALBUM INFO
By Palmetto Records
Spectrum Road is a groundbreaking collaboration between four giants of modern music: Jack Bruce, Vernon Reid, John Medeski and Cindy Blackman Santana. The collaboration was born from a shared passion for the music of legendary drummer Tony Williams.
“To be able to play and record in this band alongside three of the most creative and stellar musicians in the world is a longtime dream come true,” states Vernon Reid. “The idea for Spectrum Road first came about in 2001 and it was the ongoing belief in the kind of record we knew we could make together that made it come to fruition.”
Spectrum Road opens the ten-track effort with a blistering take on the jazz-rock barnburner "Vuelta Abajo." It's apparent from the get-go that this is no mere exercise in super-group frivolity, but a deeply attuned band speaking a rarefied improvisational language. As the recording unfolds, there's a primal urgency to the performances that ranges from the meditative beauty of "Where" to the searing intensity of "Allah B Praised." Each of these four iconoclasts play to the peak of their musical powers, yet ultimately achieve a whole greater than the sum of their individual parts. Jack Bruce's bass work anchors Spectrum Road, while he also adds vocals to three songs, including the album's centerpiece, a spellbinding version of the classic "There Comes A Time." Vernon Reid delivers one of the most inspired performances of his career. Particularly worth noting is his patient and slow-burning guitar work on "Blues For Tillmon" and a spitfire six-string barrage on "Vashkar." John Medeski shifts tonal colors throughout the ten tracks with flourishes of organ and mellotron. He brings a hefty dose of retro funk to the soaring album closer "Wild Life." As Spectrum Road's cornerstone, drummer Blackman dictates the flow, working in free time, juxtaposing delicate cymbal work against monstrous beats and fearlessly steering the quartet through a deluge of razor sharp turns.
"The band takes the electrifying music of Tony Williams as its starting point and turns it into something totally its own”, says Reid. “There's a vibe from end to end, a certain type of force and ambiance that I’ve never experienced before as an artist."
Spectrum Road is named for one of the incendiary tracks on the original Tony Williams Lifetime album, but as these four musicians demonstrate on their debut recording, this isn’t a tribute band. After making rock history with Eric Clapton and Ginger Baker in Cream, legendary British bassist Jack Bruce joined the Lifetime for two records thus serving as Spectrum Road's direct connection to their muse. The group is artfully rounded out with famed guitarist Vernon Reid, of Living Colour, and multi-keyboardist John Medeski, one-third of the juggernaut Medeski, Martin & Wood. Made famous by her ten plus years backing Lenny Kravitz, Cindy Blackman Santana has distinguished herself as an impressively versatile player who’s as comfortable on post-bop sessions with Joe Henderson and Wallace Roney as she is touring with pop stars like Kravitz and husband Carlos Santana. The formidable lineup of Spectrum Road assures the legacy of Tony Williams lives on, and clearly qualifies as a major 2012 music event.
