Review: Joshua Redman’s Double Trio
You wouldn’t expect a jazz show at the Highline Ballroom to be packed on a Wednesday night with people fighting over tables, but that was exactly what happened at Joshua Redman’s Double Trio performance last week.
The concert featured little more than a horn player backed by a monster rhythm section, and that was enough. In fact, he was brave just to stand on that stage, framed by a pair of young, in-demand bassists; Larry Grenadier, with his broad movements and low end, on his right, and Reuben Rogers, with his elastic responsiveness and tightly tucked peaks, on his left; and beyond that, a pair of the best drummers of a generation, Gregory Hutchinson, with his versatility and locked-up grooves, and Brian Blade, with his dynamic rolls and crashes.
Even late in the set during Little Ditty, when the music was quiet, almost moody, the symmetry was striking: Redman cascading brightly down the middle of dramatic rhythmic soundscape. He is a bit of a regal lion when it comes to the tenor sax, a strong, confident player whose clean tone is comfortable in any variety of settings, from his recent “real jazz” trio (to use Scofield’s term) to Chicago’s jam titans Umphrey’s McGee, although it’s fair to say that his jazz work has at times relied too heavily on precision and sharp edges. READ ON for more on Joshua Redman’s Double Trio…
