Album Review: John Armato- The Drummer Loves Ballads

The most emblematic Kansas City jazz album of 2021 is the work of a drummer who currently lives in Sacramento.  John Armato oversees a bevy of prominent Kansas City musicians on his ambitious concept album The Drummer Loves Ballads.

Armato turns to the contacts he made during the years he spent on Kansas City’s jazz scene to realize his imaginative vision.  Two storied outsiders- saxophonist Houston Person and cornetist Warren Vaché- also get in on the action on the project released in May.

A survey of a few highlights reflects the album’s breadth.  Brett Jackson pays tribute to the late baritone saxophonist Kerry Strayer on “Night Lights.”  Lucy Wijnands, the daughter of the Kansas City mainstay Bram Wijnands, croons the dreamy chanson “The Shadows of Paris.”

A duet by vocalists Ron Gutierrez and Molly Hammer is ravishing.  Veteran pianist Wayne Hawkins and clarinetist Lynn Zimmer make sentimental contributions.  An interpretation of “Lonely Woman” features characteristically stunning work from guitarist Rod Fleeman and bassist Gerald Spaits.

The inclusion of so many scene stalwarts on the stylistically conservative, musically impeccable and deliberately hushed The Drummer Loves Ballads makes the album an invaluable document of the mainstream sound that continues to dominate Kansas City’s jazz clubs.

Confirmation: Weekly News and Notes

*Anne Kniggendorf reports on the passing of Molly Hammer for KCUR.

*Tweet of the Week: MuteAnt- Jazz Shorts by The K.C. Adventure Band A Swinging K.C. Jazz, short attention spanned, big band jazz tunes featuring Arnold Young on percussion and SaneLiv aka J Triks aka Triks Adventure on keys. This is some real deal KC jazz! (link)

*From a press release issued by the American Jazz Museum: This Thursday, December 3rd at 7pm, over 350 guests from Kansas City and cities across the U.S. will tune into Believe In: AJM, a virtual event to celebrate jazz music… This one-hour, interactive at-home experience tells a heartwarming story of music mentorship between local jazz legends Bobby Watson and Lonnie McFadden, and local rising stars Morgan Faw and Charles Fisher… Additional local performers include Charles Williams, the James Ward Band, Kemet Coleman, Lisa Henry, and Eclipse.

Plastic Sax’s Favorite Albums of 2020

The pandemic failed to forestall a strong slate of new albums by Kansas City’s jazz musicians.  A ranking of the year’s top live performances is missing for sadly obvious reasons.

Favorite Albums by Kansas City Artists

1. Bobby Watson- Keepin' It Real (My review.)

2. Molly Hammer- I'm Feeling Mellow

3. Mike Dillon- Rosewood (My review.)

4. Steve Cardenas- Blue Has a Range (My review.)

5. Pat Metheny- From This Place (My review.)

6. Brian Scarborough- Sunflower Song (My review.)

7. Guitar Elation- Double Live at Green Lady Lounge (My review.)

8. Matt Otto- Alliance (My review.)

9. Flutienastiness- This Is Me (My review.)

10. Purna Loka Ensemble- Metaraga

Favorite Albums by Artists From Elsewhere

1. Jyoti- Mama, You Can Bet!

2. Jennifer Curtis and Tyshawn Sorey- Invisible Ritual

3. Ambrose Akinmusire- On the Tender Spot of Every Calloused Moment

4. Bill Frisell- Valentine

5. Kaja Draksler Octet- Out For Stars

6. Jeremy Pelt- The Art of Intimacy, Vol. 1

7. Angelica Sanchez and Marilyn Crispell- How to Turn the Moon

8. Sara Serpa- Recognition

9. Rudresh Mahanthappa- Hero Trio

10. Brad Mehldau- Suite: April 2020

I conducted the same exercise at Plastic Sax the each of the last ten years. Expanded rankings of my favorite albums of 2020 by Kansas City musicians are published at my nondenominational music site There Stands the Glass.

Confirmation: Weekly News and Notes

*The Kansas City vocalist Molly Hammer has died.

*Pat Metheny and Logan Richarson were recognized with Grammy nominations yesterday.

*Pat Metheny signed a deal with a new record label.

*Amber Underwood chatted with Joe Dimino.

*Tweet of the Week: Mutual Musicians KC- Big things in the works here at MMF. Stay tuned.

Album Review: Molly Hammer- I’m Feeling Mellow

Lukewarm reviews of Molly Hammer’s albums at Plastic Sax incited incensed reactions among friends of the Kansas City vocalist.  I’ve repeatedly suggested Hammer’s talent is better suited to sophisticated cabaret standards and brooding torch songs rather than the uptempo jazz that dominates her recordings.  

That’s why I’m over the moon about Hammer’s new album I'm Feeling Mellow.  Accompanied by guitarist Rod Fleeman and bassist Gerald Spaits, she interprets selections associated with Julie London.  By emphasizing her strengths, Hammer made the album I’ve always wanted from her.

London was joined by guitarist Barney Kessel and bassist Ray Leatherwood on her classic 1960 debut Julie Is Her Name.  Even though four of I’m Feeling Mellow’s ten tracks mirror the setting of Julie Is Her Name, Hammer’s tribute isn’t a mere facsimile.

Rather than imitating London’s icy and crystalline voice, Hammer invests heartfelt urgency in her scuffed, dented and bruised instrument.  The worldly I’m Feeling Mellow is the work of a woman who knows a lot about life.

Fleeman, a musician best known outside Kansas City for his work with Karrin Allyson, plays with his usual tasteful flair.  And as he’s done innumerable times for the cabaret star Marilyn Maye, Spaits thoughtfully accentuates the vocals.

I’m Feeling Mellow is the definitive Hammer recording.  I’m likely to turn to the album rather than to London’s catalog when I want to hear “Cry Me a River” or “Can’t Help Lovin’ That Man” ten years from now.  It’s enormously gratifying to finally give a Hammer album my unqualified endorsement.

Confirmation: Weekly News and Notes

*Molly Hammer’s new album I'm Feeling Mellow was released yesterday.

*The founder and director of the National African American Jazz Legacy Museum contrasts her endeavor with the American Jazz Museum’s mission in a report about a church fire in Oklahoma City.

*Tweet of the Week: Pat Metheny- Watch "From This Place"; Official Video: (link); Composed and Arranged by Pat Metheny; Lyric by Alison Riley; Pat Metheny: Guitar; Meshell Ndegeocello: Vocal