SOARING Steve Waterman, trumpet, flugelhorn (2, 3, 5) and electronic valve instrument (7). George Haslam, baritone sax. and tarogato (6). Robin Jones, congas and shakere (6). Tracks 3, 6, 8 recorded at Henley, England. 5 Oct. 2001. Other tracks recorded at Throwley Forstal, England. 21 June, 2002. SLAMCD 316 Bar code 5028386 031628
TRACKS: 1 El Manicero (The Peanut Vendor) Simmons/Gilbert/Sunshine 6 39 2 Tale of an African Lobster Shorty Rodgers 7 03 3 Soft Awakening George Haslam 6 06 4 Tea For Two Caesar/Youmans 6 11 5 Recado Bossa Nova Djalma Ferreira 7 22 6 Soaring Haslam/Jones/Waterman 8 09 7 Begin the Beguine Cole Porter 5 27 8 Bye Bye Blackbird Dixon/Henderson 6 38
‘Jazz Review’ March 2003
The Plaza Jazz Trio
‘Soaring’
SLAMCD 316
This is one of those recordings which is very good indeed but which is so low-key in the way it presents itself that it may not get the attention it deserves. Please join me in preventing this. What we have here is a set of Latin (and Latinised) standards plus a couple of originals played with enormous (and perhaps vaguely Beresfordian/Coxhillian) panache by a trio which, in instrumental terms, is stripped to some fairly unconventional bones - I mean, baritone, trumpet and congas? Certainly, whether by the standards of the classic Latin of Cugat, Ros and Gardel or in terms of today’s Latin-jazz outfits, this isn’t the place you’d look for the less-is-more philosophy. The scholarly will of course find precedents, should they be needed, in ad-hoc street-corner bands and the horn(s)-plus-traps groupings thrown up by the free-ish jazz tradition, but none of these comparisons quite evokes the unique, allusive power of this unassuming little gathering.
So what makes this music so good? Well, it’s always insightful to learn just how much can be subtracted from any form (music, art, engineering .. .) without disturbing its underlying structure. Refer, if you like, to any kind of big music arranged for small resources, but to do so is to end up at the piano, which, with 88 notes and all the dynamics and subtle timbral response you could ask for, hardly counts. Besides, no amount of theorizing can explain, for example, the way in which Haslam’s baritone functions as an entire horn section, bass and bass drum on "The Peanut Vendor", even if Waterman later caves in and produces a genuinely multi-layered effect with his EVI digital trumpet thingie. The album’s chock-full of ingenious role-playing of this kind, and despite the rather dry analysis above is compulsively toe-tapping. If you care for Latin stuff at all and/or enjoy musical ingenuity, do buy this.
ROGER THOMAS
Jazz Views, 013 - March 2003 Artist: Plaza Jazz Trio Title: Soaring Label: SLAM CD 316 Steve Waterman (t, fl-h, electronic valve instrument); George Haslam (bs, tarogato); Robin Jones (cga, perc) Recorded 06 & 10/01 I don’t suppose it was particularly funny at the time, but with the benefit of hindsight…George Haslam, Robin Jones and Steve Waterman were invited to play at the Havana Plaza Jazz Festival in December 2000 with Bobby Carcasses’ band. When they arrived they found that the festival programmers had them booked at one venue and the Carcasses’ band at another. There was nothing they could do but play the venue where they had been booked, and so the Plaza Jazz Trio was born. Haslam must have been pleased with his impromptu band, and set about recording it on his return to England, hence the resulting CD. They must have been quite a contrast to the Latin bands of the festival but, what they lacked in raw power they more than make up for with the lyricism of much of the playing on this disc propelled by the imaginative conga playing of Robin Jones. The choice of material too makes for a programme that retains the interest of the listener, with creative arrangements making the best of the limited instrumentation available. Waterman plays beautifully on Shorty Rogers’ ‘The Tale Of An African Lobster’, and the relationship between flugel and baritone on Haslam’s ‘Soft Awakening’ is touching in it’s poignancy. Two old chestnuts get a very unusual treatment with ‘Begin the Beguine’ making use of Waterman’s electronic valve instrument and Haslam’s heart warming saxophone against Jones’ simple yet effective rhythmic accompaniment; and a playfully swinging ‘Tea For Two’ with muted trumpet bringing some additional tonal variety to proceedings. ‘Soaring’ credited to all three musicians as composers, is a spontaneous improvisation with George Haslam picking up his tarogato for a freewheeling dialogue with the trumpet accompanied by Jones on congas and shakere in a piece that is almost totally opposite to the rest of the music heard, bringing yet another dimension to yet another intriguing release from Slam Productions. Reviewed by Nick Lea
Plaza Jazz Trio ‘Soaring’ SLAMCD 316 The Plaza Jazz Trio is one of George Haslams Latin bands -- a relative of the Anglo-Argentinian Jazz Quartet, if you will. The trio takes its name from the Plaza Jazz Festival of Havana (Cuba) where it was created in December 2000, but this debut album comprises studio recordings from two sessions held in October 2001 and June 2002. The track list is dominated by Latin and jazz standards. The scaled-down arrangements required for two horns (baritone sax and trumpet) and congas bring a breath of fresh air to tunes like Tea for Two and Recado Bossa Nova. Robin Jones congas take up a lot of room in the mix, which is just what should be. Haslam¹s round, warm tone fits these Latinized versions like a glove, although some listeners may think he stays bit too much on the softer side of things on this particular album. His own Soft Awakening, a languorous melody, features well among the familiar tunes. The 8-minute title track sees the trio make an attempt at free improvisation, but since Jones can¹t (or isn¹t willing to) break free of a typical conga pattern, it sounds more like free Latin (as in free jazz). For Cole Porter’s Begin the Beguine Steve Waterman trades his acoustic trumpet for an electronic valve instrument, an ill-advised decision. It gives the tune a trite easy-listening sound. But the other pieces offer a valuable dose of sunny chamber Latin jazz with a light free jazz touch. François Couture, All Music Guide, March 2003
Jazz Journal, March 2004
The only information I have about this promotional CD is that the Plaza Trio took its name from the Plaza Jazz Festival of Havana were the group was created in 2000. That and photographs of the three musicians next to a vintage Rover car completes my information but, as you can see above, there is a number and record stores should be able to obtain it from Slam, which is, I believe, George Haslam’s own label. (NOTE - it appears the reveiwer did not receive the tray card giving all information)
The music is free improvisation on well known themes like The Peanut Vendor and Blue Bossa but due to an absence of listing some titles, presumably new originals by the leader, are unknown to me. Oh well, life as a jazz record reviewer was never supposed to be easy. Haslam and Waterman produce some intriguing interwoven lines with the attractive blend of baritone sax and trumpet and rhythmic counterpoint from Jones on congas. Haslam is an accomplished improviser on baritone and his work has a wide variety of different approaches to jazz. His own records, like this one, tend to concentrate on free areas of expression although I have heard him at jazz festivals playing standards in a mainstream bag with equal facility and, doubtless, as much enjoyment. This reading of Tea For Two is contemporary but quite accessible to the average jazz enthusiast providing he or she is not too set in their listening habits. Waterman contributes a busy, snaking solo on muted trumpet and Jones backs assiduously.
Trace 6 is free expression with no discernible theme and just Haslam and Waterman interacting together with percussion support. Beguine is played straight by Haslam on baritone as a slow ballad and Waterman’s introduction sounds like he’s playing French horn.
Altogether an odd assortment of pieces and equally eccentric playing by the two front line instrumentalists but fascinating.
Derek Ansell