Adam Niewood & His Rabble Rousers - Epic Journeys Volumes I & II (Double CD, Innova Recordings, Jazz)
This beautifully packaged set features two CDs from Adam Niewood & His Rabble Rousers. The first disc is more structured and features all original compositions by Niewood. The second disc begins and ends with Niewood compositions...but the remaining seven tracks are free group improvisations. There's a lot to take in here...in total these discs feature approximately two hours' worth of music. Joining Niewood on these recordings are Kristjan Randalu, Jesse Lewis, Chris Higgins, Matt Brewer, Rohin Khemani, and Greg Ritchie. We initially guessed that after spinning these CDs a few times we would end up having a strong preference for one disc or the other...but this was not the case. Each has its own strengths and they both hold up equally well. Adam's precise saxophone playing drives the proceedings...but the supporting players play a pivotal role in fleshing out the sound. Overall these recordings sound like modern jazz that is highly influenced by early classic jazz artists from the 1950s and 1960s. As is always the case with Innova Recordings' releases...the sound quality is impeccable (Much thanks to engineer Paul Wickliffe, producers Bill Goodwin and Niewood, and THE BAND). These discs are packaged in a beautifully designed digipak sleeve. Impressive artsy stuff. Recommended. (Rating: 5++)
- www.babysue.com (in the Aug 2008 reviews).
Yes, Adam is the son of noted jazz saxophonist, flutist, etc. Gerry Niewood. I thought I would answer that before you asked. His mother Gurly Niewood is also a gifted musician. It always helps to have genes like that.
Epic Journey Volumes I & II (2 CDs) comprises many unrecorded original Adam Niewood compositions that had been piling up over the years. They are performed by a couple of talented groups of musicians, whom he calls the Rabble Rousers, familiar with the material thanks to much collaboration with Niewood.
Demented Lullaby, Volume I's first cut, is the prelude for two diverse jazz sets. Swirling saxophones introduce the piece, which lives in the basement level. This is a lullaby for which you keep the curtains drawn and the doors locked. The story is told in circular piano arpeggios, a throbbing bassline and textural rhythms. Niewood's flowing playing advances the tale. Plot twists are indicated by his stunted blowing. This is not a feel-good bedtime story. In that sense, it is demented. But it gets the job done. The tune successfully psyches you up for the next chapters of the impressive opus that will become an Epic Journey. After all, that is what rabble rousers are supposed to do.
- Walter Kolosky, Jazz.com
There's almost nothing more thrilling than listening to a section of improvised music as its inner shape begins to form. Oh, sure, sometimes music of this sort doesn't really have a shape, the energy and texture being more important than form. With A Rap Tap Tap In The Night, Adam Niewood and his cohorts shift mid-song from meandering (and I mean that in the best possible way) sax, percussion and piano that spends a great deal of time on texture, to a more modal approach. I'm imagining A Love Supreme turned up a few notches.
- Mark Saleski, Jazz.com
Presenting a double CD set of original and mostly freestyle improvised music, Manhattan-based saxophonist and composer Adam Niewood turns in a marvelous performance on the reeds where he plays all five saxophones and the clarinet. Adam happens to be the son of saxophonist great Gerry Niewood whom I first heard play on an early 70s two record set of a Chuck Mangione concert with the Rochester Philharmonic. This Niewood version prefers the creative and sophisticated structure of free jazz providing specific tempos, grooves and moods you will not find in more traditional jazz music.
Niewood is featured prominently here as he plays the lead on various instruments. The album offers a great deal of improvisational material where seven of the nine tracks on disc two, are clearly indicated in the liner notes as “Free Group Improvisation,” noticing the listener that improvised music is what your going to hear, no standards, melodies or contemporary harmonies here.
Joining the saxophonist on this epic journey are Rabble Rousers guitarist Jesse Lewis, pianist Kristjan Randalu, bassist Matt Brewer and Chris Higgins, and drummers Robin Khemani and Greg Ritchie.
If you favor the free style improvised jazz genre, then Adam Niewood’s Epic Journey will be one interesting musical trek you will find challenging and a highly entertaining session of music.
- Edward Blanco, Aug 26, 2008
Year: 2008
Label: Innova Recordings
Artist Web: www.niewood.com
When a group has a name like Adam Niewood & His Rabble Rousers, one might assume that their focus is something along the lines of outlaw country, honky tonk, or Southern rock. But there are no covers of Merle Haggard's Mama Tried, Johnny Cash's Folsom Prison Blues, or Waylon Jennings' Good Hearted Woman on this two-CD set. Actually, Epic Journeys, Vol. 1 & 2 isn't country at all. Niewood's group is jazz all the way — specifically, post-bop jazz with detours into the mildly avant-garde at times. Epic Journeys isn't radically avant-garde; the double-disc isn't an exercise in atonal chaos, and reedman Niewood (who wrote all of the material himself) puts a lot of thought into melody, harmony, and composition. But he also makes improvisation a high priority — mostly inside improvisation, although there is a fair amount of outside improvisation as well. And when Niewood and the Rabble Rousers do venture outside, they aren't necessarily going to go about it a particular way. Sometimes, their outside playing has the reflective, contemplative, economical approach that Chicago's Association for the Advancement of Creative Musicians is known for. But other times, the outside playing is denser and more intense. Niewood plays several different instruments on Epic Journeys, including tenor sax, alto sax, soprano sax, baritone sax, C-melody sax, clarinet and bass clarinet — and as a soloist, his obvious influences include, among others, John Coltrane, Joe Lovano, and Eric Dolphy. The material on this 2008 release isn't groundbreaking by late 2000s standards, but Niewood's playing, arranging, and composing are consistently solid. Epic Journeys is an enjoyable demonstration of the ways in which the inside and the outside can work together for the greater good in jazz; just don't expect to hear any Johnny Paycheck songs.
- Alex Henderson, All Music, September 2008
ADAM NIEWOOD/Epic Journey V. 1 & 2:
With his pop being one of Chuck Mangione¹s original sidekicks, it¹s fair to
say that sax comes naturally and easily to this saxman. Using the double CD
format to push boundaries and flex his wings, Niewood goes from the straight
and narrow to the wild and woolly. A rising comer garnering admiration from
saxman that have come before him, Niewood easily vindicates on all counts.
This collection is snappy with energy and creativity to spare. A sure bet
for anyone up for a wild ride.
708 (Innova)
- www.midwestrecord.com
Show less