Matt Wilson and Arts and Crafts
Monday, May 7th, 2007
While in Los Angeles, I got to hear some live jazz at the Jazz Bakery. The bakery is a neat little venue. It’s a non-profit organization supporting live jazz and they appear to bring in some pretty great players. That was definitely true the night that I got to go.
I had not heard of Matt Wilson before, but after getting to know him a bit through a little research, he appears to be a pretty well known and accomplished player. What I can say from my personal experience is that he’s a fantastic drummer and his band, Arts and Crafts, consists of three additional musicians who are each fabulous as well. Altogether, hearing this group ranks pretty highly up there on my live jazz experiences. Granted, I don’t get to have a lot of live jazz listening experiences living in OKC, but I try to take advantage any time I’m in a major city. The trip to hear Matt Wilson was definitely worth it.
His group includes Matt Wilson, of course, on drums. He’s a versatile drummer with a great ability to explore unusual and unique sounds through his instrument. Plus, he has a great ability to play in a wide dynamic range. Actually, all of the musicians in his group excel at making dynamics an integral part of their musicianship.
Next is Terell Stafford on trumpet, a phenomenally versatile player with a beautiful tone and a whole lot of licks under his fingers. Gary Versace played acoustic piano, accordion, and a special treat for me, an actual Hammond organ. With all three instruments at his disposal, he brought a unique sound to each new tune. And with some obvious classical training and experience behind him, he offered interpretations I found to be extremely interesting and challenging. Finally, Dennis Irwin played bass. He also plays clarinet, evidently, as there was a clarinet laying next to him, but he never used it during the set I attended.
Together, Arts and Crafts creates a sound that is rooted in standards-driven acoustic jazz but when you hear them, you realize there is nothing ordinary or simple about anything they bring. They push the limits of their instruments, of dynamics, of form and of tone in ways that are challenging while still offering enough foundation to keep the ground under their feet.
