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John Medeski

Keyboard master John Medeski thrives on the unpredictable, a trait that has kept his work with the trailblazing trio Medeski Martin & Wood (MMW) fresh and surprising for more than twenty years. With A Different Time, his first solo piano project, Medeski once again takes his sound in a completely unexpected direction – unexpected even to him.

“I had a more eclectic record in mind,” Medeski says. “I wanted to put out something that would be more representative of what my live solo concerts are like.”

Instead, A Different Time is a far more introspective, meditative collection than fans of MMW’s lively, groove-driven music might expect. Consisting mostly of Medeski’s own compositions and improvisations, with a familiar spiritual and a Willie Nelson song added into the mix, the album presents a different side of Medeski’s prodigious artistry, one which he was initially reluctant to display.

“In all honesty, it was a little scary to put this out because it’s so meditative and contemplative,” Medeski admits. “I know it’s not what anybody’s expecting, but it’s a side of me that exists. It’s really raw and open, stripped of all hipness. But it’s made me a little less afraid to just drop into the moment and play what’s coming to me as opposed to something that I know will work, something that I know is cool, something that I know will have a certain effect. The whole point is to get lost in the music.”

Not just a first for Medeski, A Different Time also marks the return of the historic OKeh label, once home for such jazz pioneers as Louis Armstrong, Duke Ellington, King Oliver, and Sidney Bechet. Sony Classical has revived the label as an outlet for new jazz releases by artists like Medeski, Bill Frisell, David Sanborn, and Bob James, among others to be announced. “At this point,” Medeski says, “after everything that’s gone on in the music business, it’s exciting that Sony has come around to releasing new creative music again. I like the energy of being part of something new.”

While he’s become better known for a more buoyant, organ-centric approach that melds free-wheeling jazz with jam band eclecticism, Medeski says that sitting alone at a piano feels natural, returning him to his earliest experiences at the keyboard. “I grew up playing piano my whole life,” he says, “so it feels like home to me.” He began playing more solo concerts in recent years, and decided it was time to document that aspect of his playing.

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12
Album Review

John Zorn: Gnosis: The Inner Light

Read "Gnosis: The Inner Light" reviewed by Nenad Georgievski


John Zorn's album Gnosis: The Inner Light serves as a poignant memorial and homage to the creative genius of one of modern music's most visionary composers, Ennio Morricone, who played a vital role in shaping Zorn's musical path. Decades ago, Zorn captivated audiences with The Big Gundown (Nonesuch, 1986), a groundbreaking release that boldly reimagined Morricone's compositions. Now, with Gnosis: The Inner Light, Zorn once again pays tribute to the maestro's enduring influence, delving into mystical realms and creating a ...

5
Album Review

Club d'Elf: You Never Know

Read "You Never Know" reviewed by Chris M. Slawecki


You Never Know is the Club d'Elf studio album that captures the whirling, overlapping orbits of acoustic, electric and exotic sounds of the floating improvisational collective, which has recorded and performed together for more than two decades, with crisp studio clarity. But more importantly, You Never Know celebrates light born from darkness. Bassist and bandleader Mike Rivard, the sole constant in the collective's 24-year run, suffered a near-death experience from a pulmonary embolism which struck him while he ...

2
Radio & Podcasts

For John Medeski music has always been about healing

Read "For John Medeski music has always been about healing" reviewed by Leo Sidran


For John Medeski, music has always been about healing. “Music just kind of sucked me up," he says. “For me having music was a great way to deal with the hard things in life.Best known as one-third of the avant-garde jazz / funk trio Medeski, Martin & Wood along with Billy Martin and Chris Wood (aka MMW), Medeski began playing piano as a kid, growing up in Florida. By high school, he was sitting in with the likes ...

6
Album Review

Will Bernard: Pond Life

Read "Pond Life" reviewed by Mark Corroto


All great performances, be they athletic or musical, start with a solid base. For guitarist Will Bernard that is a trio with drummer Ches Smith (Ceramic Dog, Snakeoil) and completing Bernard's bass (sic) with both the acoustic and electric input of bassist Chris Lightcap. Upon this foundation Bernard is inspired to expand his music with the help of keyboardist John Medeski and saxophonist Tim Berne. Medeski can be heard on the guitarist's 2008 album Blue Plate Special (Palmetto Records) and ...

12
Album Review

Club D'Elf: You Never Know

Read "You Never Know" reviewed by Chris May


Near-death experiences can reboot the mind, separating the important from the trivial. It seems to have worked like that for bassist and composer Mike Rivard, founder and leader of Boston's world-dub-jazz band Club D'Elf. A few years back, Rivard was nearly felled by a pulmonary embolism while seeking spiritual insight in the Amazonian rain forest. A long, dark period of depression followed, before Rivard emerged recharged into the light, having been sustained in large part by gnawa, the Moroccan trance ...

5
Album Review

Jeff Cosgrove / John Medeski / Jeff Lederer: History Gets Ahead of the Story

Read "History Gets Ahead of the Story" reviewed by Jerome Wilson


William Parker gets deserved acclaim for his abilities as a bassist and his activism and leadership in the avant jazz community but not as much for his composing. Drummer Jeff Cosgrove tries to correct that with this project that features Parker's music played by an organ trio with no bassist. Cosgrove's partners in this venture are John Medeski on organ and Jeff Lederer on various reeds. Both are adept at covering the wide variety of gut-bucket grooves, spiritual ...

5
Album Review

Jeff Cosgrove, John Medeski, Jeff Lederer: History Gets Ahead of the Story

Read "History Gets Ahead of the Story" reviewed by Ian Patterson


The striking absence of a bassist on this organ-trio tribute to William Parker speaks volumes about the singular approach that Jeff Cosgrove, John Medeski and Jeff Lederer have taken to the compositions of a modern jazz great. Parker's music is so diverse, his output so vast, that a cohesive overview would be difficult to distil onto a single CD, so perhaps for this reason the trio narrows its focus to Parker's post-2000 small ensembles, and in particular the bassist's quartet ...

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2

Education

New England Conservatory’s Contemporary Musical Arts Program Shines A Spotlight On Alumni Including Aoife O’Donovan, Sarah Jarosz, John Medeski

New England Conservatory’s Contemporary Musical Arts Program Shines A Spotlight On Alumni Including Aoife O’Donovan, Sarah Jarosz, John Medeski

Source: Braithwaite & Katz Communications

New England Conservatory’s Contemporary Musical Arts program showcases the musical achievements of department alumni with Coast to Coast, a month-long celebration June 1 – 30, 2023. Featured are artists in a wide array of genres including jazz, folk, klezmer, Indian classical, bluegrass, original music and more. “We couldn’t think of a better way to cap our 50th Anniversary Celebration than shining a light on our brilliant alumni,” says department Co-Chair Eden MacAdam-Somer. “By highlighting their performances during one single month, ...

3

Event

NEC Alum John Medeski Returns To Campus For Performance On Thursday, February 26

NEC Alum John Medeski Returns To Campus  For Performance On Thursday, February 26

Source: Ann Braithwaite

“The Music of Ken Schaphorst and John Medeski” Concert to Feature Pianist and Hammond B3 Organ Player Medeski, Percussionist Rakalam Bob Moses, and the NEC Jazz Orchestra Conducted by Ken Schaphorst Medeski Also Working with Students During 3-Day Residency NEC alum John Medeski '88 returns to his alma mater to play piano and Hammond B3 organ with the NEC Jazz Orchestra in a concert featuring his own music alongside works by Duke Ellington, Rakalam Bob Moses and Ken Schaphorst. Medeski ...

Performance / Tour

Jazz This Week: Matt Wilson Quartet with John Medeski, Bonerama, Dave Easley, and More

Jazz This Week: Matt Wilson Quartet with John Medeski, Bonerama, Dave Easley, and More

Source: St. Louis Jazz Notes by Dean Minderman

While winter weather has delayed one of this week's headliners for a day, there's still plenty of live jazz and creative music happening in and around St. Louis for those willing to get out and brave the cold. Let's go to the highlights... If it weren't for the big snowstorm hitting the East Coast, tonight would have been the first of four nights featuring drummer Matt Wilson's quartet with special guest pianist John Medeski at Jazz at the Bistro. However, ...

1

Recording

Keyboard Master John Medeski Branches out on Debut Solo Piano Album, "A Different Time", Available on April 9 Via Okeh

Keyboard Master John Medeski Branches out on Debut Solo Piano Album, "A Different Time", Available on April 9 Via Okeh

Source: DL Media

Introspective & Meditative Collection Spotlights Mostly Original Medeski Compositions Through Use of Historic Gaveau Piano Project Serves as First Release on the Newly Re-Launched Label Keyboard master John Medeski thrives on the unpredictable, a trait that has kept his work with the trailblazing trio Medeski Martin & Wood (MMW) fresh and surprising for more than twenty years. With A Different Time, his first solo piano project, Medeski once again takes his sound in a completely unexpected direction – unexpected even ...

31

Recording

Spectrum Road: Jack Bruce, Cindy Blackman Santana, Vernon Reid & John Medeski

Spectrum Road: Jack Bruce, Cindy Blackman Santana, Vernon Reid & John Medeski

Source: Calabro Music

Spectrum Road is a groundbreaking collaboration between four giants of modern music: Jack Bruce, Vernon Reid, John Medeski and Cindy Blackman Santana. Born from a shared passion for the music of legendary drummer Tony Williams, the band will release their self-titled debut album on June 5 through Palmetto Records. Later that week, Spectrum Road celebrates its arrival with a highly anticipated performance at Bonnaroo on June 9, which also serves as the first show of a US summer tour. Complete ...

86

Recording

John Medeski and Lee Shaw "Together Again" Live

John Medeski and Lee Shaw "Together Again" Live

Source: Gapplegate Music Review by Grego Edwards

Lee Shaw gets into her 84th year with a flair. Her live European CD we covered several days ago (see below). Today it's a CD of her trio (Rich Syracuse, Jeff “Siege" Siegel) plus her former student John Medeski live at the Egg in Albany, Together Again (ARC 2222). Lee sticks to her piano while John goes from piano to melodica to Hammond. The new edition of the Smithsonian jazz anthology includes a Medeski, Martin and Wood cut, so in ...

54

Recording

Phree-dem Download 5: Melvin Gibbs' Liberation Theology - "No He Didn't" featuring John Medeski

Phree-dem Download 5: Melvin Gibbs' Liberation Theology - "No He Didn't" featuring John Medeski

Source: Melvin Gibbs

For the fifth week of bassist/producer Melvin Gibbs' free download series he presents a track from his Liberation Theology project recorded live in concert. This composition begins with traditional Lukumi (Afro-Cuban Yoruba) bata drumming and a chant for the Orisha (African Saint) Shango which then leads into a fiery groove featuring the soloing of John Medeski on organ. Other member of the group include: Alex Rodriguez: lead vocal/ bata drum Michael Rodriguez: background vocal/ bata drum ...

136

Recording

Melvin Gibbs' Phree-dem Downloads Week 2 features Pete Cosey and John Medeski

Melvin Gibbs' Phree-dem Downloads Week 2 features Pete Cosey and John Medeski

Source: Melvin Gibbs

The Phree-dem Downloads free music series continues into its' second week with the composition “Pete's Mojo." Bassist/producer Melvin Gibbs features Miles Davis (Get Up With It, Dark Magus, Agartha) alumni Pete Cosey on guitar and John Medeski on organ and electric piano on this track from his “Melvin Runs The Hoodoo Down" project This project, which takes the music of the Miles Davis' album Bitches Brew as it's starting point, is based on a production technique Melvin calls “infrapolation." “Pete's ...

196

Interview

MMW Keyboardist John Medeski Interviewed at AAJ and More!

MMW Keyboardist John Medeski Interviewed at AAJ and More!

Source: All About Jazz

The Medeski, Martin & Wood band, one that has amassed followers like a snowball rolling down a mountain of wet snow since its emergence on the scene over 18 years ago, is one of those exceptional organizations that doesn't stick to playing what might be expected by its audiences. They don't play it safe, instead choosing to explore sounds, grooves, genres as the spirit moves them. And 2009 saw the spirit moving them a great deal.

For proof, Exhibit A ...

Dave Mattock
organ, Hammond B3
Julian Hartwell
keyboards

Photos

Concerts

Music

Recordings: As Leader | As Sideperson

Dragons Layer

Music Factory Records
2023

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Meeting of the Minds

Music Factory Records
2023

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You Never Know

Face Pelt Records
2022

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Pond Life

Dreck to Disk Records
2022

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