Difficult Listening Hour

Hello and welcome to another Difficult Listening Hour, where we play none of the hits and your landlord keeps banging on his ceiling with a broom to demand you turn it down.

This week we’ll spend quality time with Season Of Changes from Brian Blade & The Fellowship Band. Before we get to the album let me just say, 5/5 stars for a band name! Things are already off to a good start with an unintentional Tolkien reference. No Hobbits were harmed in the making of this music.

Season is an album best described as contemporary jazz - wait - where are you going? You haven’t been excused, yet. The best thing about this genre is how broad it is. Yes, on one end of the spectrum is what a guy I know calls “Bop-Squeak” (perfect, right?), but this album is modern and warm and lyrical without slipping into dreaded smooth jazz territory.

The other best thing about the genre is there really is no wrong way to do it. There is so much freedom in the choices the artists can make! As the listener, that means you will be constantly surprised and delighted by changing voices, textures, and instrumentation. If I had to choose a favorite track, it’s probably ‘Improvisation’ featuring a bass clarinet over pump organ. Play this meditative track for anyone and jazz will be the furthest thing from their mind - this is more like a folk spiritual than anything else, so much so your brain will tell you that you should know the tune it’s based on even though it’s an original Jon Cowherd composition. There is also a wonderfully raw humanity to this track: listen for Myron Walden’s breathing and the occasional clacking of his clarinet keys.

Check it out.

Used without permission from Verve. Neener-neener!