JD Allen - Graffiti (2015)

JD Allen's career ascendence suggests that he's making plenty of the right choices. The native of Detroit has been on the New York scene since 1993, when his youthful precociousness earned him a spot in “Jazz Ahead”, the singer Betty Carter's acclaimed touring program for up-and-comers. TimeOut New York says he will “remind you of giants like Coltrane and Rollins but placing a special kind of premium on concision, directness and accessibility.” The Chicago Reader adds, “Allen has gravitated toward a more brooding, elliptical approach with a strong jolt of John Coltrane at his most probing.” Finally, JD is, in the words of Connecticut's WNPR, “A man for all seasons,” who “plays ballads with warmth, beauty and truth, grooves hard in a post-bop mode or wails in a free jazz setting with passion saturated with the soulful spirituality, grace and inspired abandon recalling the power and the glory of John Coltrane.” One of the telltale symbols of his upward trajectory is the fact that his trio, bassist Gregg August (lead bass chair in the Brooklyn Philharmonic) and drummer Rudy Royston (a much sought-after rhythm power since relocating to New York from Denver), has remained solid throughout his rise.