Tad Britton grew up in Sturgis, South Dakota; hence the title of his debut album as a bandleader,
Black Hills. The Seattle-based drummer has led an unusual life for a jazzman, getting his start in
country bands as a teenager and spending a lengthy stint in the official house band of the Church of the Subgenius,
the Swingin' Love Corpses, during the '80s and early '90s. A long association with mellow bassist
Jeff Johnson, his musical partner on this low-key trio set, gives a better clue as to the content of
Black Hills.
Britton,
Johnson and pianist
Marc Seales are beholden to no particular subgenre of
contemporary jazz, favoring a simple, meditative style and a taste for unexpected covers one wouldn't expect to work in a piano trio context, like
James Taylor's
"Fire and Rain," Michel Legrand's
"The Windmills of Your Mind" and, most unusually,
Johnny Cash's
"Ring of Fire" transformed into a mournful ballad. These aren't attention grabbing hack jobs like the
Bad Plus' covers of
alt-rock classics, but simple, respectful versions of familiar songs that find unexpected byways within their well-worn tunes. The originals are equally fine, recalling perhaps a less
experimental, more meditative version of
E.S.T. Definitely worth a close listen. ~ Stewart Mason
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