Since the 1990s,
Kurt Elling has proved a most innovative jazz singer. His recordings -- particularly
The Messenger,
Man in the Air, and
Nightmoves -- also reveal him to be a modern jazz visionary. On
The Gate,
Elling presents nine songs gathered from rock, pop, soul, and jazz. Produced by
Don Was,
Elling is accompanied by longtime pianist
Laurence Hobgood, saxophonist
Bob Mintzer, guitarist
John McLean, bassist John Pattitucci, alternating drummers
Terreon Gulley and
Kobie Watkins, and percussionist
Lenny Castro. The material here is evocative of
Elling's all encompassing view of jazz as an ever-innovative popular music. It opens with a subtle, deeply emotive and poetic reading of
King Crimson's "Matte Kudasai." Commencing with only
Patitucci's upright bass before
Gulley and
Hobgood enter from the edges,
Elling croons languidly at the upper reaches of his range.
McLean's guitar is used economically and delicately until his solo.
Joe Jackson's "Steppin' Out" extends beyond the realm of the author's
Cole Porter-influenced pop, transforming it into a warm, swinging, cool jazz number. The sparsity of
Hobgood's phrasing underscoring
Elling's voice shows remarkable restraint;
Castro's hand percussion counters
Watkins' hi-hat groove and makes it pop.
Herbie Hancock's "Come Running to Me" changes shape entirely, from its funky fretless bass and vocoder roots comes a bona fide soul-jazz midtempo ballad.
Stevie Wonder's "Golden Lady" backs off the funk; but the exacting interplay between
Hobgood and
Gulley keeps the soul intact;
Elling reinvents it as an acoustic jazz ballad.
The Beatles' "Norwegian Wood" subtly restructures the tune's rhythmic accents without forsaking a note of its melody.
Earth, Wind & Fire's "After the Love Has Gone" is transformed into a limpid, nearly ethereal tone poem. The reading of
Miles Davis' "Blue in Green" is based on
Al Jarreau's arrangement, but it opens up more: space and texture grant his voice room to explore the melody's interior. "Samurai Cowboy," an original co-written with
Marc Johnson, features
Elling's multi-tracked vocals in a chanted chorus, underscoring a syncopated blues, highlighted by
Mintzer's gritty fills. "Nighttown, Lady Bright" closes it as poetic, post-beat improvisation with
Elling reciting as well as singing.
The Gate presents
Elling at the top of his game; it is a song cycle that is mesmerizing and mysterious as it is provocative and compelling. ~ Thom Jurek