Tony Allen JID018

by Tony Allen, Adrian Younge

Overview

The Tony Allen entry for the Jazz Is Dead label/series is on fire. Founded by composer/producer/retro-soul musician Adrian Younge and hip-hop DJ/producer/rapper Ali Shaheed Muhammad (A Tribe Called Quest), Jazz Is Dead creates a place for Younge, Muhammad, and other musicians to collaborate with the heroes of jazz, funk, and other forms of deep expression that inspired new generations of music-makers. As one of the inventors of Afrobeat, Allen carved out a path for countless musicians to follow, and JID018 is built on his steady polyrhythmic drumming and rock-solid grooves. The eight selections here follow a similar pattern, with up-front drums pushing along heavy repetitions of deep funk and Afrobeat. This repetition is anything but boring, however, as the playing is wide open, dynamic, and vibrantly expressive. Pieces like "Steady Tremble" and the staggered hop of "No End" create meditative states where dirty organ, hot horns, and simmering guitar lines can slink in and out of the picture. "Don't Believe the Dancers" enters more of a soul-jazz territory, with clusters of flute, spirited sax soloing, and marimba all frolicking joyously around Allen's masterful but restrained work on the drum kit. JID018 taps into some of the same sauntering Afrobeat energy that Allen cultivated with Fela Kuti and Africa '70, but also explores new ideas with the dizzying rhythms and jazzy horn runs of "No Beginning" and the spartan funk of "Makoko." The sessions for JID018 were tracked before Allen's death in 2020, and knowing that it stands as some of his last studio work gives the project a bittersweetness. Even with this sad additional context, JID018 is an absolutely simmering set, with one of Afrobeat's creators showing us how it's done once again. ~ Fred Thomas

Product Details

Release Date:	07/07/2023
Label:	JAZZ IS DEAD
UPC:	4062548042887

Tracks

1. Ebun
2. Steady Tremble
3. Oladipo
4. Don't Believe the Dancers
5. Makoko
6. Lagos
7. No Beginning
8. No End

Album Credits

Performance Credits

Adrian Younge   Primary Artist,Organ,Marimba,Percussion,Guitar (Bass),Yamaha Keyboards,Guitar (Electric)
Tony Allen   Primary Artist,Drums
Lasim Richards   Trombone
Scott Mayo   Flute
Tatiana Tate   Trumpet
Jazmin Hicks   Percussion
Phillip Whack   Sax (Alto)
Emile Martinez   Trumpet
Jacob Scesney   Sax (Baritone)
Loren Oden   Percussion
David Urquidi   Sax (Baritone)
Marcus Gray   Percussion
Jaman Laws   Sax (Tenor)

Technical Credits

Adrian Younge   Mixing,Composer,Producer
Tony Allen   Composer
Dave Cooley   Mastering
Andrew Lojero   Executive Producer
Ali Shaheed Muhammad   Producer,Mixing
Julian Montague   Graphic Design
Adam Block   Associate Producer