OBATALA from RELEASE THE DAY
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- This is another all-star downtown affair organized by Australian pianist and composer Barney McAll. The personnel features: Peter Apfelbaum on tenor sax, Gary Bartz on alto sax, Kurt Rosenwinkel on guitar, Clark Gayton on trombone, Fabio Morgera on trumpet, Jay Rodriguez on flutes, Tony Scherr & Johannes Wiedenmuller on basses, Eddie Bobe on percussion and Joey Baron & Kenny Wollesen on drums. Barney McAll plays piano, Wurlitzer electric piano and Hammond B3 organ and wrote all of the songs on this disc.
This fine disc starts with a long, simmering piece called "Thirty Three", it has a slow, hypnotic repeating acoustic bassline. Peter Apfelbaum's soulful tenor sax sounds especially warm and enticing. This piece has that early Pharoah-like spiritual vibe and Peter's sax does sound somewhat Pharaoh-like, without resorting to any screams. Barney takes an exquisite, quietly soulful piano solo that is done most tastefully. This and another piece here was inspired by the sacred rhythms of the Orishas and Obatala cultures. They do have some sort of spiritual vibe. Latin percussionist, Eddie Bobe, shines throughout and is often the secret ingredient that makes these tunes so special by adding his own rhythmic spice. Although Barney, Kurt Rosenwinkel and both saxists take a number of short inspired solos, it is most often the overall sublime sound and exquisite melodies that make this so memorable. - BLG
-DOWNTOWN MUSIC GALLERY NEW YORK
McAll manages to intelligently integrate pop elements into his music and deserves much wider attention.
- LOS ANGELES TIMES
"(McAll's) ability to craft memorable themes is matched by a feel for the atmospheric..Now established on the intensely
competitive New York jazz scene, he plays here with some of the city's leading musicians.His music is utterly contemporary,
McAll demonstrating throughout that he is a talented composer as
well as gifted keyboardist"
- ROLLING STONE MAGAZINE
