Swept Away

Dinner jazz, late night jazz, relaxing and sweet jazz, modern noir jazz, lyrical and penetrating jazz, outstanding improvisational jazz: it is all here. Separate and together, Eliane Elias, piano, and Marc Johnson, bass, compose and arrange the tunes on this album and Joey Baron, drums, and the great Joe Lovano on tenor saxophone help develop the richness and power of the melodies. The only exception to the novel tunes is the old folk song, Shenandoah, which is performed by the bass only in a slow, low, grand manner. Package notes are limited to photographs of the artists, track times, and production credits. ECM typically lets the music speak for itself. The first two tracks immediately melt the listener with lush sonority and instrumental interchange. The third piece is Elias' Middle Eastern allegro fantasy, a bright, noisy affair. Johnson's first tune is next, a sketchy dawn light of slow blues rifts that becomes stronger and contiguous as the sun rises above the horizon. Elias' fluttering butterfly features a happy, playful melody and Johnson's delightful counter rhythm and bass line; they trade places as Johnson solos midway. The plucking bass is soft and resonate. Lovano is the vehicle for Johnson's Midnight Blue, a self-explanatory piece where the sad saxophone exposition is commented by the piano. Moments returns to the sophistication and elegance of the first tracks: a deep exhalation of satisfaction. The first collaborative composition, Sirens of Titan, in keeping with its science-fiction title, is an energetic, driving ride into the musical cosmos. Johnson's Foujita seems to be a nostalgic portrait, perhaps of the French-Japanese artist by that name. Inside Her Old Music Box, the second of the collaborations, has Johnson bowing the bass in melancholy followed by pizzicato and the tinkling piano. This album's variety of styles and composition plus the sensitivity of performance by leading musicians make it a very worthy addition to the jazz treasury.

Throughout the years, ECM records has covered lots of different musical territories, from ultra avante garde jazz, to atmospheric, classical, and music so beautiful and technically proficient that it's inconceivable a human being created it. Keith Jarrett's "The Melody at Night" disc, for example.Swept Away is a Marc Johnson AND Elaine Elias work of art falling into that last category. All four musicians are at the height of their game. Joe Lovano's lines are mighty fine and tasty, and Joey Baron is completely sizzling on drums.But this is a Marc and Elaine disc. Elaine has certainly garnered significant accolades over the years, but she really is a talent at the level of true greats of jazz piano. This is one of the few discs that she's not singing on, and you can totally hear the majesty of her playing. There are so many stunning pieces on this disc and her compositions shine.No weird, dissonant, or hard to absorb pieces here--everything is highly accessible. You'll keep coming back to this disc. Wait till you hear what Elaine does on the piano. She's a stunner, right up there with all the living legends. It's that good.

Once in a while you come upon a very special CD and it takes up residence in your player for a long time. Swept Away is that kind of CD. The tracks offer a wonderful mix of jazz tempos and moods, all of which are best savoured in the evening when one can really get into the music without any other distractions. But don’t let the word “mix” mislead you — this CD flows extremely well from beginning to end as the musicians weave through the music, exploring its textures and nuances. The fact that the audio quality is amazing is a nice bonus too!

Stellar musicianship throughout. A very fine follow up to the equally excellent Shades of Jade. I first became aware of Marc Johnson through his unfortunately only recording with Paul Bley. Due to the beauty of his playing I have sought out all of his recordings. Everyone’s playing on Swept Away is excellent and Elaine Elias,as on the previously recorded Shades of Jade, is a revelation.

Beautiful classic jazz. I was unfamiliar with these artists, and bought this after hearing a single cut from a sampler CD that came with my Winter issue of Jazziz Magazine. BTW I would highly recommend Jazziz to any and all jazz lovers - four print issues, each of which arrives with two CDs, plus 12 digital issues annually each of which includes links to 300+- recordings and videos. So far I have thoroughly enjoyed it.

Gorgeous album. Eliane Elias has maybe the most beautiful sound of any jazz pianist I can think of. She reminds me of Bill Evans. My only complaint is that I wish Mark Johnson was given more room to solo. I saw him at the Village Vanguard 2 months ago. I love his playing. Joe Lovano fits right in on the tracks where he plays.

Great CD. I really enjoy it. I bought it because of elaine elias and I was expecting to hear her voice over her usual samba inspired jazzy tracks. However there are no vocals and no samba. More of a jazz album. Not familiar with Marc Johnson. However it is a good cd and I enjoy it.

While I waited for the original CD to arrive, i was able to enjoy the music due to the amazon cloud player option. This is a fantastic collection by the Elias / Johnson team that is sure to please all jazz lovers. Did you know that Marc Johnson played bass with Bill Evans?