Joe Jewell : Every Note Counts

“Every Note Counts”, the first CD from Guitarist Joe Jewell is a gem of an album that features Joe wearing a number of musical hats throughout the nine tunes. Jazz, Classical and Blues/Rock are all fodder for Joe’s creative musings as he plays each style with passion, enthusiasm and grace.

The first tune, “Something Special”, composed by the legendary Jim Hall, lays claim to Joe’s smooth guitar style as he combines fast-fingered chops with plenty of taste and articulation. His bright tone and expressive phrasing reminds me of Larry Carlton’s “Strikes Twice” period, especially during Joe’s overdriven Blues/Rock solo during the Erroll Dixon classic “Back At The Chicken Shack”, where he tastefully bends and over-bends notes getting in a couple of quick played lines in the process. The rest of the band cooks on this tune as well, with Bassist Baba Elefante delivering a nice solo along with Fender Rhodes player Reed Gratz. Drummer Mike Bennett drives the band home with some meaty playing resulting in a great bopping tune that should have your feet tapping from the get-go.

Another foot-tapper is the popular Bobby Hebb tune “Sunny”. Joe and the boys open the tune with a cool sounding rhythmic figure before launching into the melody played in octaves. He then takes a great solo that displays his tasteful playing quite nicely filled with choice bluesy statements and quick runs. Gratz gets to show off his improvisational talents as well, as does Bennett on drums and percussion. A lively interpretation of a great classic.

And speaking of great classics, “Alone Together” receives a nice jolt of freshness as Joe and the guys loosely flirt with the melody at the beginning, interacting musically with each other before Joe kicks the tune into high gear with a dynamic solo that has him smoothly snaking his way through the changes. Gratz gets to shine on the keys as Bennett swings the tune hard getting a couple of nice trading 8’s licks in before the band brings the tune to a close reprising the syncopated intro. Nicely done guys!

“A Child Is Born” and “I’ve Grown Accustomed To Your Face” feature Joe et al in a soulful mood that allows them to showoff their sensitive sides. “I’ve Grown Accustomed To Your Face” has some beautiful chordal motion from Joe as he starts off the tune with a sweet chord melody intro that is soon received warmly by the rest of the group. His solo is engaging and tender as the group lays out softly under him. “A Child Is Born” receives similar treatment and is affectionately played by all concerned.

As mentioned earlier, Joe wears many hats on this CD and one of them employs his Classical chops on the intro to the Bossa tune “Estate” with a piece written by Augustin Barrios Mangore titled “La Catedral (Prelude)”. It is a moody piece that ties both tunes together nicely using a James Bond sounding CESH (Chromatic Embellishment of Static Harmony or Contrapuntal Elaboration of Static Harmony, take your pick). And Joe’s interpretation of the “Estate” melody utilizing chords and single lines is wonderful as is his superb improvisation throughout the tune. Not to be outdone, Elafante’s expressive fretless bass solo is nicely done as well.

There are some great tunes on this CD and Joe gets my congrats for choosing them, but there are two that I find myself going back to often: the beautiful Sam Rivers tune “Beatrice” and the Palitz/Wilder collaboration “While We’re Young”. I don’t know what it is about those two tunes, I mean apart from their gorgeous melodies, but they just keep me coming back for more.

The CD finishes off with the Cole Porter tune “Dream Dancing” and Monk’s “In Walked Bud”, two great tunes that bring the album to a close quite nicely. Surprisingly, "Dream Dancing” doesn’t even have Joe on it. Rather, he just lets the group have at it without feeling the need to add his own voice, which I think is very cool. It takes a mature individual to know when to lay out for the music and Joe does it on that tune in spades.

I’m very happy to have received this CD and after listening to it a bunch of times I concur with the title sentiment, every note does count which Joe and the group seem to live by. It is a great sounding album with a wonderful cast of players and I look forward to hearing more from Joe. I just hope that he doesn’t wait another five decades for the next CD.

Go to cdbaby.com/cd/joejewellquartet to purchase Every Note Counts and check out Joe Jewell MySpace at www.myspace.com/joejewell to see what else he has to offer.

Lyle Robinson