Search - Dave Young :: Manhattan Echoes

Pianist Gene DiNovi has a rich background in jazz, beginning with early work with Charlie Parker in the 1940s and subsequent sessions with Benny Goodman and Artie Shaw. Decades as a studio musician and accompanist to singers like Lena Horne and Carmen McRae, as well as a long residence in Toronto, may have kept his name out of the American jazz spotlight, but he still possesses rare talents, like a limpid touch that magnifies a ballad's harmony or the critical placement of a note for maximum rhythmic impact. He's joined here by James Campbell, a clarinetist best known for his work in the classical realm, and bassist Dave Young, who's logged many an hour with the great Oscar Peterson. DiNovi's early associations and Campbell's original inspirations dovetail here. "Goodbye" and "The World Is Waiting for the Sunrise" invoke Benny Goodman, and Campbell plays Artie Shaw's original solo on "Stardust." Campbell's sound is alternately sibilantly liquid and dryly woody. It adds to the inner glow of this music, much of it directly inspired by the Manhattan of DiNovi's youth. The emphasis is on ballads imbued with a late-night ambience, like Stephen Sondheim's "Anyone Can Whistle" or DiNovi's own "Sweet Song of the Night," but the pianist can still swing with abandon on "Jitterbug Waltz" or dig deeply into the blues on "Tune for Andy." It's all gently but firmly propelled by Young's big-toned bass. Floating ethereally between jazz and chamber music, this is intimate and relaxed work that still sets and meets some very high standards. --Stuart Broomer