Search - Michael Wolff :: Love and Destruction

I don't even particularily like this kind of music . . .

Jan P. Dennis | Monument, CO USA | 12/17/2006

(5 out of 5 stars)

". . . but that doesn't prevent me from giving it 5 stars.



Really, I'm a little nonplussed as to why brilliant jazz pianist Michael Wolff would try his hand at this genre, namely, bloozy/jazz vocals. Why not stick with what he's proved he can succeed at--smart, contemporary instrumental jazz?



I don't know, and I don't care.



Wielding, what must be admitted, a vocal approach that scarcely ascends to the heights of genius, Wolff nevertheless manages to imbue his sung stylings with a certain panache that seldom fails to win over the skeptical listener. And, somehow, he's injected an entirely infectious vibe into these proceedings that makes them not only cool but memorable.



Quite and achievement, and one not to be gainsaid.



That said, I don't see myself often opting for this disc from the many that he's recorded, even as I consistently find myself longing for his return to pure instrumental jazz. What I fear, moreover, is that this disc will become, willy-nilly, Wolff's defining moment, and thus chart the course of his subsequent career, something I believe would be a profound mistake and a misappropriation of monster talent.



But.



There's such a non-negotiable happenin' vibe here that I'm not even going to complain.



****3/4."

Mediocrity from a good musician

Larry Phillips | Keene NH | 01/09/2007

(2 out of 5 stars)

"Having heard Wolf in NYC play these songs, I thought I would like the album but the recording focuses too much on the vocals (not his biggest asset) and too little on the jazz-fusion of the live performance. Use your money to go see him live, forget the CD."