Tete Montoliu - Piano For Nuria (1968/2016) [Hi-Res]

The blind Spanish pianist Tete Montoliu was an international star; an original stylist with prodigious technique, he was one of the foremost hard bop pianists. Montoliu worked Lionel Hampton, Roland Kirk, Dexter Gordon, Johnny Griffin and Elvin Jones. Here Tete teams up with Peter Trunk, “The best German bassist” (J.E. Berendt) who “belongs among the greats of the instrument” (jazz-toccata), and Afro-American drummer Albert “Tootie” Heath who has played and recorded with virtually every major player of the last 50 years. The album is something of a lucky accident – the trio was the rhythm section for an album featuring tenor sax giants Ben Webster and Don Byas. MPS owner was so taken by the trio that he insisted they stay and record – our good luck! Dedicated to Tete’s daughter, Blues for Nuria is a stunning original that mixes a taste of Monk, freewheeling dissonance, and the Catalonian’s turbulent hard bop style. Trunk’s bluesy waltz Tranquillogy features exhilarating piano and bass solos, and his Visca l’Ampurda twists and turns as a driving medium tempo underpins virtuoso solos. The trio swings hard on the medium-up standards Alone Together, and Speak Low, while Tete technically and emotionally astounds on his solo rendition of I Surrender, Dear. The album rides home with the Benny Golson jazz classic Stable Mates. If you’re not hip to Tete Montoliu, then this is a good album to get informed; if you’re already a fan, it’s a must! Great piano trio jazz.

„Hans Georg Brunner-Schwer didn't waste time in the studio when he had a rhythm section the likes of pianist Tete Montoliu, bassist Peter Trunk, and drummer Albert "Tootie" Heath. The three musicians, who were playing for a recorded studio meeting between tenor sax giants Ben Webster and Don Byas over two days in 1968, were simultaneously working on their own record date for Saba. The opening track is a startling original blues by Montoliu that mixes the flavor of Monk's dissonance with the Catalonian's own furious hard bop technique. Trunk contributed both the bluesy waltz "Tranquillogy" and the unpredictable "Visca l'Ampurda," which must have been a challenge to learn. Montoliu's approach to standards like "Alone Together" and "Speak Low" is more typical, while he tackles "I Surrender, Dear" as a solo. Unlike most recordings issued by Brunner-Schwer, the piano on this CD seems out of tune and slightly overmodulated, giving it a somewhat brittle sound. But Montoliu's breathtaking performances are able to overcome these minor blemishes.“ (Ken Dryden, AMG)

Tete Montoliu, piano
Peter Trunk, bass
Al "Tootie" Heath, drums

Produced by Hans Georg Brunner-Schwer

Digitally remastered