Jacky Terrasson

“Push”

(Concord Jazz 0888072316409)

Pianist Jacky Terrasson was born in Berlin in 1966 to a French father and an Afro American mother. He was raised in Paris and learnt classical piano from the age of five, later turning to jazz where he learned his trade playing in all the capital’s leading clubs. Notable engagements were with singer Dee Dee Bridgewater and bassist Ray Brown.

In 1990 Terrasson moved to New York where he remains to this day. He signed to Blue Note Records in 1994 subsequently recording a total of ten albums for the label, many of them with one word titles including “Reach” (1996), “Alive” (1998), “Smile” (2002) and “Mirror” (2007). “Rendezvous” (1997), recorded with singer Cassandra Wilson proved to be one of his most commercially successful ventures.

Terrasson sticks with the one-word monikers for this, his first record for Concord. He is a player with a phenomenal technique but some critics have suggested that he doesn’t always use his gifts to their best advantage. Terrasson is an inveterate crowd pleaser and a musician with ideas to burn. Although “Push” is ostensibly a piano trio record Terrasson throws a whole raft of other influences into the mix as he makes use of electric keyboards and even sings on two of the album’s eleven cuts.

Terrasson’s core trio consists of himself plus the hip rhythm team of Ben Williams (bass) and Jamire Williams (drums-no relation). These two are one of New York’s coolest rhythm pairings with drummer Jamire Williams having recently made a big impression on the album “Yesterday You Said Tomorrow” by new trumpet sensation Christian Scott.

“Push” also features a number of guest artists including tenor saxophonist Jacques Schwarz-Bart, percussionist Cyro Baptista, guitarist Matthew Stevens and most notably harmonica player Gregoire Maret, once a member of the Pat Metheny Group.

Terrasson’s chosen material includes seven originals, two Thelonious Monk tunes (“Ruby My Dear” and “Round Midnight”), Cole Porter’s “You’d Be So Nice To Come Home To” and rather less obviously a segue of Michael Jackson’s “Beat It” with the jazz standard “Body And Soul”. Terrasson’s “everything but the kitchen sink” approach ensures that all the outside tunes have interesting and colourful arrangements.

The album opens with the lively original “Gaux Girl”, which has something of the feel of early Keith Jarrett about it. Terrasson seems to have a particular affinity for Jarrett’s country/gospel stylings as evidenced by the later “My Church” which features a similar kind of vibe. The two Williams’ offer subtly funky support but the smatterings of electric keyboard are distracting and superfluous. Not a bad start though, overall.

The unlikely “Beat It Body And Soul” emerges out of delicate free form ruminations, Jackson’s famous riff first appearing as a delicate sliver of melody. Even when heavily disguised it still packs a powerful punch as Terrasson and his colleagues fuse the pop hit and the venerable jazz standard into something hip and thoroughly contemporary. You have to admire the man’s technique and sheer ingenuity. This improbable pairing emerges as an unqualified success.

Terrasson’s treatment of Monk’s “Ruby My Dear” also works brilliantly with Gregoire Maret’s brilliant but soulful harmonica playing taking the spotlight. It all works surprisingly well and brings out the full beauty of Monk’s melody. Terrasson himself responds with some of his most lyrical playing on the record but he’s subtly exploratory too.

“Beat Bop” is brief and frenetic with Terrasson switching between electric and acoustic keyboards. The exuberant central piano solo complete with Jarrett style vocalising is impressive enough and both Williamses respond admirably to the cracking pace set by Terrasson. Some of the electric stuff sounds a bit gloopy though, and it’s tempting to dismiss the whole thing as a bit of a novelty.  However there’s no misgivings from Terrasson and his colleagues, they clearly enjoy themselves hugely as evidenced by the unedited whooping left in at the end of the take.

On a record that lurches madly from one mood to another the trio’s take on Monk’s “Round Midnight” comes as a complete contrast. They begin with a suitably bluesy, after hours feel and migrate through various piano stylings without ever losing the essence of the piece. There are hints of Ahmad Jamal plus Mehldau and Jarrett in an assured trio performance that also includes some classical flourishes from the leader.

“Morning” includes a confident performance from tenor saxophonist Jacques Schwarz-Bart who adds a pleasingly bluesy element to the tricky, stop- start rhythmic grooves.

Solo piano opens the gospel drenched ballad “My Church”. Ben Williams’ bass solo is wonderful,  combining a big, round tone with an admirable lyricism. Terrasson later solos expansively but the essential simplicity of the piece is never lost. Terrasson adopts something of a “less is more” approach here and the result is one of the album’s most successful performances.

I’m less keen however on “Say Yeah” which includes Terrasson’s voice on the choruses. There’s a strong gospel influence here too, filtered through Stevie Wonder, a comparison re-enforced by the inclusion of Maret’s harmonica. It’s another joyous performance and one that may well appeal to many. For myself it’s a little too smooth and maybe a bit too removed from my definition of “real jazz”. A heavily disguised trio version of Cole Porter’s “You’d Be So Nice To Come Home To” is more to my liking with the trio really pushing the envelope. Tight, dense and complex there’s some great music here with everybody’s playing right on the money.

The lovely “Carry Me Away” is a beautiful ballad performance with guest Cyro Baptista’s delicately nuanced percussion shadings a particular delight. Baptista is rather more exuberant on the final “O Cafe, O Soleil” a joyous Afro-Cuban closer that again features Terrasson’s vocals. However it’s his wonderfully percussive piano that really takes the honours on what is essentially a rather lightweight item.

Reviewing this album in Jazzwise magazine Selwyn Harris described this as an album “that will   infuriate and excite listeners in equal measures”. That’s pretty much spot on for me, there are some great performances here and the playing is excellent throughout. However the constant stylistic shifts entail that the album doesn’t really cohere as a whole. On the one hand I admire the broad scope of Terrasson’s enthusiasms, but at the same time his sheer exuberance can be grossly irritating. He’s like a kid in a sweet shop.

I’ve not heard a great deal else of Terrasson’s work but I get the impression that with Terrasson this is what you get. There’s no doubting the man’s technique though and I’m sure he’s an absolutely dynamic live performer.

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