I've got no problem with rock music, but I do tend to blanch any time I see a jazz artist releasing....
....an album filled with pop titles....flashbacks from ill fated jazz/rock experiments in the late '60's I suppose. Too often it ends up sounding like the musical equivalent of a shotgun marriage, with neither side being very comfortable with the connubial arrangements. So you can just about imagine my reaction when I perused the back cover of Paul Bollenback's latest, Double Gemini (Challenge) and saw tunes from Hootie and the Blowfish, Earth Wind and Fire, Sting and (god help me, I swear it's true!) the Red Hot Chili Peppers. Did I shriek...swear...or send a chair hurling towards the CD player? On the contrary, I got up and did the closest thing that I do which resembles dancing. I was loving it!
I'll start by admitting a certain amount of ignorance of all of the original recordings, but with a bit of skillful arranging and some reharmonization, Bollenback has managed to fuse the testosterone of rock with the sophistication and swing of jazz. Helping him out in this endeavor are his frequent playmates, organist Joey DeFrancesco and drummer Jeff "Tain" Watts. I guess I really shouldn't be quite so surprised about how well DOUBLE GEMINI works looking back at artists like Jimmy Smith or Grant Green, who always managed to find some great R&B tunes to rework, and both E,W & F's "After the Love Has Gone" and Stevie Wonder's "I am Singing" come across with that same sort of vibe. Watt's drumming on the Wonder tune, by the way, is absolutely killer.
The Chili Peppers' "Breaking the Girl" is one of two tours-de-forces for the trio. Paul's title track is the other. Both are filled with the laser-like licks which the guitarist is known for, and likewise feature some smoldering solos from DeFrancesco. The band manages to play both sides of the fence with Hootie's "Let Her Cry", giving it a churning 7/4 intro that segs into the simple theme, joyously returning to more hot Bollenback guitar. In like fashion, his "Open Hand" manages to reconcile some funky, bluesy lines with a pretty melody, in an extended type of compositional call and response. There is a kinder, gentler side to be found on Bollenback's disc as well, with the guitarist picking up his nylon string Buscarino Cabaret for a subtly pulsing version of Sergio Mendes' samba "So Many Stars". Sting's "Fields of Gold" is given a similar reflective reading and Bollenback's "Cat's Eye" is an acoustic solo highlighted by sparkling guitar tone and a haunting minor theme. His "Reflections of Jaco" is filled with snatches of Pastorius and Weather Report played to the tune of an overdubbed 12-string guitar.
There is an attitude about this disc which is refreshing, honest and often irresistible. Out of a growing group of dazzling young guitarists, it might just be Bollenback who can bring jazz into the homes of Generation X!
by: Jim Fisch (1998)
