★★★★★
Nicholas Payton can be, or perhaps more accurately enjoys being, unpredictable. He moves to the beat of his own inner drummer. Considering that on his brilliant 2013, Sketches of Spain , his trumpet is heard on 90 per cent of the 40-minute suite, it comes as a bit of a surprise that on his latest release, Numbers , the Grammy-winning musician blows the horn on just the first cut. He also mans the Fender Rhodes that is his instrument of choice during the rest of the disc...
- www.offbeat.com
2014-11-26
★★★★★
When a major instrumental talent makes a recording on which she or he plays very little of the instrument that made her or him famous, that is a statement. Miles Davis did this for a time in the 1970s, perhaps as a way of emphasizing that his music was increasingly a collective, not a "series of solos" as had become customary in jazz. Ornate Coleman moved away from just his alto saxophone for a period of time, stretching out to violin and trumpet...
- www.popmatters.com
2014-11-07
★★★★★
When legendary trumpeter Miles Davis released Sketches of Spain in 1960, it created much controversy with complaints that it was neither jazz nor classical music. The work, which was arranged and conducted by Davis' longtime collaborator, composer Gil Evans, nonetheless became an extremely well-selling album. It proved that Davis' always-innovative vision, in this case the fusing of genres, could find success and was years ahead of its time...
- www.offbeat.com
2013-10-29
★★★★★
Those of you expecting Nicholas Payton's new record to sound like his great records Dear Louis or Doc Cheatham and Nicholas Payton will be very surprised. Bitches takes the sound of his 1970s Miles Davis-esque sleeper record Sonic Trance and pushes it into modern rhythm and blues. With the exception of guest vocals by Esperanza Spalding, N'dambi, and Saunders Sermons, Payton plays all the instruments and sings...
- www.offbeat.com
2011-02-28
★★★★★
The influence of saxophonist Wayne Shorter on the world of jazz is undeniable. As a member of the 1960s Miles Davis Quintet and then as co-founder of the '70s fusion phenomenon Weather Report, Shorter displayed an all-encompassing style of playing and a meticulous, sensitive approach to composition that helped reshape jazz music forever. Mysterious Shorter, an album described in the liner notes as "an investigation and exploration of the groove music of Mr...
- www.offbeat.com
2010-11-09
★★★★★
This project which was produced by Nicholas Payton contains nine original tunes and three remakes marks the renaissance in Payton's career as he steps away from traditional jazz, but not traditional jazz conventions. The CD gets off to a good start with the cut "Zigaboogaloo," a fast paced New Orleans styled groove stamped with funky rhythms and compelling beats. "Li'l Duke's Strut," adds pizzazz to jazz and is a fascinating interplay of forces...
- www.jazzreview.com
2010-08-23
★★★★★
New Orleans born hornman, Nicholas Payton recently issued a rather unique tribute to the late Satchmo and titled "Dear Louis." The new offering on Verve showcases Payton with an 11-piece big band playing tunes that were identified with Louis Armstrong at various points of his career in jazz. Make no mistake; these are tributes to the "spirit" of "Pops" and not mere imitations of his style...
- www.jazzreview.com
2010-08-23
★★★★★
Trumpeter Nicholas Payton started out years ago as a musician known for being steeped in the traditions of his New Orleans origins. The "young lion" of about fifteen years ago had a brash, bold sound. He even produced a Louis Armstrong tribute?Dear Louis (Verve, 2001)?and did an album working with the classy Armstrong contemporary Doc Cheatham?Doc Cheatham & Nicholas Payton (Verve, 1997)...
- www.allaboutjazz.com
2010-08-20
★★★★★
Payton delivers a program of largely originals, spiced by two additions from the band (Tim Warfield, saxes; Anthony Wonsey, piano; Reuben Rogers, bass; Adonis Rose, drums) and the surprise inclusion of Maurice White's pop-jazz classic "Sun Goddess...
- www.jazztimes.com
2010-02-19
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