Ethan Iverson Quartet – Common Practice (Live At The Village Vanguard – 2017) (2019) [FLAC 24bit/96kHz]

Playing jazz that’s “out” (meaning futuristic in a myriad of ways) is stylish and wins the respect of adventurous listeners. And yet it’s also foolish to ignore artistic vision that’s rooted in the wisdom of music history. After nearly two decades in The Bad Plus, Ethan Iverson left to pursue solo ventures like this quartet date recorded live in January 2017 at the Village Vanguard with the trumpeter Tom Harrell aboard. While there is little either cannot do musically—The Bad Plus has recorded covers from unlikely rock sources like Nirvana and Bowie while Harrell has shown interest in hip hop—here they settle into the well-worn groove of jazz standards with especially satisfying results.

To emphasize the point that standards are never really mined out as a source of fresh interpretative insights, the foursome ease into a slow ruminative version of the Gershwin’s “The Man I Love,” where Harrell gives a moving, nakedly emotional performance. Instead of being the center of attention with showy solos, Iverson works as the crucial binding agent to these tightly knit quartet performances, tastefully supporting Harrell’s remarkably compact solos in their opulent reading of “I Can’t Get Started with You.” Touches of modernity appear in Iverson’s slightly off kilter intro to “Sentimental Journey.” The rhythm section of bassist Ben Street and drummer Eric McPherson are pliant and potent on the slower numbers, adding a hard driving swing to Kern/Hammerstein’s “All the Things You Are,” and a full-on hard bop groove to “Wee.” Tellingly, a pair of bluesy Iverson originals, “Philadelphia Creamer,” and “Jed From Teaneck,” fit seamlessly into this straight-ahead program devoted to what Iverson calls “reassessing jazz tradition and heritage.” It’s a near perfect match of material and solo voices committed to a rewarding conversation. – Robert Baird

Tracklist:
1. The Man I Love
2. Philadelphia Creamer
3. Wee
4. I Cant Get Started
5. Sentimental Journey
6. Out Of Nowhere
7. Polka Dots And Moonbeams
8. All The Things You Are
9. Jed From Teaneck
10. Im Getting Sentimental Over You
11. I Remember You

Personnel:
Ethan Iverson (piano)
Tom Harrell (trumpet)
Ben Street double bass)
Eric McPherson (drums)

Download:

mqs.link_EthanIvers0nQuartetC0mm0nPracticeLiveAtTheVillageVanguard201720192496.part1.rar
mqs.link_EthanIvers0nQuartetC0mm0nPracticeLiveAtTheVillageVanguard201720192496.part2.rar