Joe De Rose and Amici

“Sounds For The Soul”

(First Orbit Sounds Music FOSM 131)

Joe De Rose is an American drummer, composer and educator based in his home town of San Jose, California. He studied at the prestigious Berklee College of Music in Boston before returning home and first came to my attention as a member of guitarist Hristo Vitchev’s Quartet.  The Vitchev quartet’s excellent album “Song For Messambria” is reviewed elsewhere on this site.

De Rose comes from a large Italian American family and the name of his band, Amici,is literally Italian for “Friends”. It’s an appropriate choice, Rose brings together his three colleagues from the Vitchev group, Vitchev himself on guitar, Weber Iago on piano and Dan Robbins on bass with saxophonist Dann Zinn expanding the group to a quintet. The majority of the tunes are co-written by De Rose and Vitchev but to these ears the music is less distinctive than that on “Song For Messambria”. On his own album Vitchev brought some of the folk influences of his native Bulgaria to the proceedings, De Rose favours a more orthodox but less characterful fusion sound that has its roots in the 70’s and 80’s and clearly references some of his early influences. De Rose’s notes acknowledge John Coltrane and Louie Bellson but I also hear echoes of CTI style fusion, Steely Dan, Pat Metheny, Return To Forever and others.

Not that “Sounds For The Soul” is a bad album. Once the listener has got past the gushingly sincere credits/liner notes there’s still plenty of good music to be heard. The playing is of the characteristically high technical standard we have come to expect from these musicians but over the course of an album things can begin to sound a little too polished and to veer towards the bland. Also there’s little variation in mood, style and pace with only the closing “Miracles” significantly deviating from a rather homogeneous group sound.

“Nick’s Legacy”, a dedication to De Rose’s late father, is a spirited opener, lithe and lightly funky with solos from each member of the band plus a series of drum breaks from De Rose. Zinn solos first followed by Iago on Fender Rhodes, Robbins on Jaco inspired electric bass and finally the excellent Vitchev on guitar. His ringing chords help to give the piece, and the album as a whole, some much needed character.

The next piece,“The Skies Below”, comes from the pen of Weber Iago who manages to combine a brooding quality with a certain underlying funkiness. It’s an impressive piece of work with the composer again featuring on Fender Rhodes and with particularly strong contributions coming from Zinn and Vitchev.

“Tal’s Dream” is a good natured tribute to Talmadge Hicks, a late friend and formative musical influence, the mood is largely celebratory with features for the nimble Robbins on electric bass, Iago on Rhodes, Vitchev on guitar and Zinn on breezy soprano. De Rose propels proceedings authoritatively from the back. 

“Bros At Play” is an amiable groove orientated work out dedicated to De Rose’s elder brothers, one of whom, Gino, is a fellow drummer. Solos come from Iago at the Rhodes, Vitchev on rock flavoured guitar and Zinn on sinuous soprano.

The lengthy “Ancient Prayer” which weighs in at just under the ten minute mark is a solo composition from Vitchev. A hard driving, twisting and turning fusion epic the piece boasts Zinn’s most expansive solo thus far, this time on tenor, plus lengthy excursions from Iago on electric piano and Vitchev on soaring guitar. The soloists are propelled by De Rose’s muscular drumming in an impressive display of sticks-manship.

De Rose dedicates “Drum Angel” to one of his percussion heroes, the late great Louie Bellson. Also of Italian descent Bellson was an inspiration and role model to the young De Rose and this affectionate but powerful tribute is crowned with a series of drum breaks alongside features for Iago and Zinn.

“Tears From Tokyo”, dedicated to De Rose’s mother is thus far the nearest the album gets to a ballad.  The melody was conceived when De Rose felt homesick during a Japanese tour with the Hristo Vitchev quartet. On returning to the US the pair refined and developed the tune, the first to be written for this album. This delightfully melodic piece still retains a subtle funk backbone and includes solos from Iago on Rhodes, Vitchev on guitar and Robbins on singing, high register electric bass. 

De Rose offers no observations on the title track, a punchy, grooving offering that gives solo opportunities to each member of the band (Zinn, Iago, Vitchev and Robbins) as De Rose keeps the pot bubbling.

The closing “Miracles”, co-written with Iago offers something very different to that which has gone before. A sumptuous and uplifting ballad it features Iago on acoustic piano instead of the ubiquitous Rhodes and also shows De Rose’s talents as a colourist- as opposed to being the driver of the band. Zinn’s playing is appropriately tender and both Robbins and Vitchev are suitably lyrical as the album signs off in valedictory style.

“Sounds For The Soul” has much to commend it. The playing from all five members of the Amici group is excellent throughout with Vitchev arguably the most distinctive soloist. Although the writing is less distinguished than on Vitchev’s own record he and De Rose (and to a lesser extent Iago) have still come up with some strong themes and melodic ideas. Invariably this style of music can sound a little too smooth when committed to disc but one suspects that De Rose’s Amici group is an altogether more exciting prospect when encountered live- as so many so called fusion outfits are. 

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