Home » Jazz Articles » Album Review » Eberhard Weber: Endless Days

278

Eberhard Weber: Endless Days

By

Sign in to view read count
Eberhard Weber: Endless Days
To put it quite simply, this is a very important release and for many reasons. Foremost, it’s Eberhard Weber’s first date as a leader in some seven years. In addition, it’s probably his most realized group effort to date, taking advantage of his mature writing style and the past track record he shares with the musicians involved. Multi-instrumentalist Paul McCandless is, of course, one of the founding fathers of the group Oregon, with pianist Rainer Bruninghaus a regular of Weber’s group Colours. As for drummer Michael DiPasqua, this marks his first recording in fourteen years, having been gone from the music scene since 1986. To add another tangle to this web, it should be noted that both DiPasqua and McCandless were present on Weber’s transcendent 1982 ECM project Later That Evening, a masterpiece that also featured the budding talents of Lyle Mays and Bill Frisell.

Now that all that’s out of the way, let’s get to the music at hand. Weber has stated he wanted to create a work that was more classical in nature and less attuned to jazz sensibilities, that seeming somewhat of a paradox considering that Endless Days is very jazz-based indeed. The opening “Concerto For Bass” doesn’t seem like a concerto at all, but a delicate jazz waltz with McCandless’ charming oboe speaking the melody. Both “French Diary” and “Concerto For Piano” are less about swing sensibilities and more straight in character, although a beat dominates throughout. The title track and “The Last Stage of a Long Journey” are probably the most “classical sounding” of the lot, taking on an orchestral hue via Bruninghaus’ lush synthesizer backgrounds.

By using a hybrid electric bass, Weber adds to the characteristic sound of the recording as a whole. His writing also captures a lovely balance between animated and more pastoral moods, offering us an ECM classic in the making.

Track Listing

Concerto for Bass; French Diary; Solo for Bass; Nuit Blanche; A Walk in the Garrigue; Concerto for Piano; Endless Days; The Last Stage of a Long Journey.

Personnel

Eberhard Weber: bass; Paul McCandless: oboe, french horn, bass clarinet, soprano saxophone; Rainer Br

Album information

Title: Endless Days | Year Released: 2001 | Record Label: ECM Records

Comments

Tags


For the Love of Jazz
Get the Jazz Near You newsletter All About Jazz has been a pillar of jazz since 1995, championing it as an art form and, more importantly, supporting the musicians who create it. Our enduring commitment has made "AAJ" one of the most culturally important websites of its kind, read by hundreds of thousands of fans, musicians and industry figures every month.

You Can Help
To expand our coverage even further and develop new means to foster jazz discovery and connectivity we need your help. You can become a sustaining member for a modest $20 and in return, we'll immediately hide those pesky ads plus provide access to future articles for a full year. This winning combination will vastly improve your AAJ experience and allow us to vigorously build on the pioneering work we first started in 1995. So enjoy an ad-free AAJ experience and help us remain a positive beacon for jazz by making a donation today.

More

Fiesta at Caroga
Afro-Caribbean Jazz Collective
Fellowship
David Gibson
Immense Blue
Olie Brice / Rachel Musson / Mark Sanders

Popular

Get more of a good thing!

Our weekly newsletter highlights our top stories, our special offers, and upcoming jazz events near you.