2 great sessions from pianist
Curtis Clark – a crucially overlooked player, and one
with a style that bridges the modernist gap between Thelonious Monk and Cecil Taylor! The first 5 tracks on the set are all (coincidentally enough!) tunes by Monk – played
with a trio that includes Wayne Dockery on bass and
Louis Moholo on drums, in a style that really changes up the mood of the original compositions, yet still keeps all their angular charm. Titles include "Misterioso", "Monk's Mood", "Light Blue", and the great "Worry Later/
San Francisco Holiday". The remaining 6 tracks on the CD feature the trio
with Dockery and
Moholo, expanded to a septet
with players that include Tristan Honsiger on cello, Felicity Provan on trumpet, and Tobias Delius on tenor sax. These tunes are nearly all originals by
Clark, and some of them are a fair bit straighter than his other work of the time – almost in a soulbop mode on the best numbers. Titles include "Sean", "Two Shadows In The Mist", "Nelson", and "Diaphane".