Greg Fenton reviews Brandon Woody – For The Love Of It All – Blue Note Records
Swimming in a slipstream of predetermined, pre-programmed nostalgia can be hard to navigate, but hit play and watch the minutes explode. Every note that sounds is as important as the last. Each time I get fired up by the energy of Jazz, it is like a celebration of the longevity of this integral, always-present musical form, even if it doesn’t always (thankfully) sing loudest above the mainstream tide.
Brandon Woody’s excellent debut album talks in big languages, filling the air with trumpet blows feverishly caressing the lifts and drops of life. It is forever engaging on a trajectory that feels like forward motion, augmented by a series of punctuating, important accompaniments by his band Upendo.
For me, the music is as much about painting pictures as it is about reflecting the intensity of feeling. It soars and investigates breadth and depth.
Try, Beyond the Reach of Our Eyes for a breathless exploration of all that meaning and rush of excitement only this genre can conjure. Or the deeply resonating tones of Perseverance or any number here, as they all contain the same qualities, including vocals and voices.
For The Love Of It All is a world blessed with purpose. If you love jazz and its timeless, limitless freedom of sound, you may love it, too.
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Brandon Woody
Blue Note Records
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