Dave Brubeck Albums (121)
'Complete 1958 Berlin Concert'
Release Date 1/31/2008
Tracks 6
Label Rare Live
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What The Critics Say
It's not uncommon for anyone to turn toward nostalgia as the years wear on, and at age 86, with nearly 60 years of recording behind him and nearly 50 since he shook up the jazz world with his landmark Time Out album, Dave Brubeck is certainly entitled to look back and take stock of his life. Indian Summer -- the phrase itself suggests an acknowledgement of a waning in progress -- is something of a companion piece to 2004's Private Brubeck Remembers. Like that gem, Indian Summer is a solo piano work comprised of Brubeck's ruminations on standards of the mid-20th century, the period when he was just coming up as an artist and blossoming as a young man. These are reflective, meditative ballads, softly but skillfully played and hinting at melancholy. On time-worn Americana such as "Georgia on My Mind," "September Song," "Sweet Lorraine," and "Spring Is Here," Brubeck is restrained but soulful, out to prove nothing. It's not that age has dulled him; Brubeck's performance is uniformly exquisite, imaginative, and elegant; it's just not edgy. A small handful of original material nicely complements the standards, adding up to one of the more intimate entries in Brubeck's enormous discography. ~ Jeff Tamarkin, All Music Guide
'Brubeck Piano Compositions'
Release Date 11/9/2006
Tracks 23
Label Phoenix
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What The Critics Say
John De Haan, a classically trained tenor, ambitiously tackles both jazz works and concert music written by the legendary Dave Brubeck. Brubeck, who has rarely accompanied vocalists on piano without a small group or an orchestra, is masterful with his backing of De Haan on the first seven selections, as are the pieces themselves. But De Haan fails to realize that an opera singer has to approach jazz vehicles from a different perspective, as a result, he often comes across sounding rather pompous, excessively using vibrato and consistently holding notes far too long. He drags down the normally lyrical "Strange Meadowlark" and makes a mess of "There'll Be No Tomorrow" (Brubeck's haunting tribute to Chopin), though the composer's introduction is breathtaking. Brubeck was commissioned to set several poems by Langston Hughes to music, resulting in the extended work "Hold Fast to Dreams," which has yet to have been documented on CD. De Haan is clearly more at home performing this material, though Cliff Jackson's unexpressive accompaniment suggests that the pianist spent very little time rehearsing these unfamiliar works. Soprano Jane Giering-De Haan displays some of the same problems as her husband on the jazz tracks, absolutely butchering "Hold Fast to Dreams" and overdoing it in her duet with him of "The Dream Keeper." "Once When I Was Very Young," which began life as a poem by Michael Brubeck (the composer's second son), pales in comparison to the a cappella rendition by the Gregg Smith Singers heard on Brubeck's Music Masters CD Once When I Was Very Young. Longtime fans of Dave Brubeck appreciate his gifts both as a composer and pianist in any setting, but these vocal interpretations by John De Haan hardly add an important chapter to Brubeck's legacy. If Kevin Mahogany had sung the jazz pieces and baritone Kevin Deas had performed the classical tracks with pianist John Salmon, it would have been a very different story. ~ Ken Dryden, All Music Guide
'London Flat, London Sharp'
Release Date 1/1/2005
Tracks 10
Label Telarc
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What The Critics Say
Dave Brubeck mixes old and new compositions in these outstanding studio sessions recorded in early 2004. The pianist not only composes a formidable output of inventive new works on a regular basis, but he maintains a distinctive sound at the piano, one that grows even more adventurous over time. "London Flat, London Sharp" is a typical new composition from his later years. When alto saxophonist Bobby Militello first heard it, he wasn't sure he could play it, as Brubeck's left hand moves chromatically down the scale in flats as his right simultaneously moves up in sharps at a brisk tempo. But Militello, like any musician who has worked regularly with the pianist, responded to the challenge and turns in a blistering performance, with the support of Michael Moore (one of the very best all-around bassists), longtime Brubeck drummer Randy Jones (whose tenure as Brubeck's drummer exceeded 24 years at the time of these sessions), and the composer; it has since become a part of the quartet's concert repertoire. "To Sit and Dream" is an excerpt from a commissioned work ("Hold Fast to Dreams") in which Brubeck set the poems of Langston Hughes to music. Beginning as a lush, deliberate solo, it quickly turns into a wailing number. One non-Brubeck composition is the haunting, beautiful "Steps to Peace," composed by Derrill Bradley after his daughter was killed in the crash of the hijacked Flight 93 on September 11, 2001. Militello switches to flute for this moving ballad. "Yes, We All Have Our Cross to Bear" was jointly written with Brubeck's goddaughter Nancy Wade and premiered in a 2002 concert with the pianist by Choral Arts of Chattanooga (a studio recording, Brubeck in Chattanooga, was recorded at the same time and released in 2004, with both vocal and instrumental interpretations). This loping quartet arrangement showcases a tasty solo by Moore and a reverent solo passage by Brubeck. The remainder of the CD focuses on works previously recorded by the pianist. "Mr. Fats" is a tribute to the stride piano chops of the always swinging Fats Waller, though his boogie-woogie bassline salutes Cleo Brown, a fine keyboardist who introduced the young composer to Art Tatum in the 1940s. Along with "Mr. Fats," the three compositions "Cassandra," "Forty Days," and "Unisphere" have been a regular part of Brubeck's concert programs, yet the group finds something fresh within all four of these decades-old pieces. "Ballad of the Rhine" began life as "We Crossed the Rhine" in the 1940s when then-Private Brubeck wrote it to play with his Wolf Pack Band to entertain troops in Europe during World War II. Brubeck reworked it into a stunning solo ballad while his bandmates took a break. This is yet another superb CD by the prolific and ageless Dave Brubeck. ~ Ken Dryden, All Music Guide
What The Critics Say
This double-disc set is a determined effort to clear the shelf and record as much of Dave Brubeck's classical output as possible while the composer was still around to participate and guide the performers' hands. The project was done in only four sessions at London's Abbey Road Studios without the benefit of tuneup concerts; conductor Russell Gloyd says that the London Symphony Orchestra and London Voices were practically sight-reading throughout. As such, it's a miracle that these performances turned out as well as they did -- or perhaps not, since Gloyd is Brubeck's chosen interpreter (and manager) and these busy London professionals are used to mastering new material quickly. Almost all of the set is taken up by three big sacred choral compositions, which for all of their rampant eclecticism bear the same unmistakable stamp of Brubeck's harmonic signatures and all-embracing personality. Beloved Son (1978), an Easter oratorio, has choral passages that might have been inspired by those in J.S. Bach's St. Matthew Passion -- which is roughly about the same subject -- but also some militancy, a free-form episode from the Dave Brubeck Quartet (which they never do when playing jazz in concert), and a rocking gospel workout on the concluding He Is Risen. The Pange Lingua Variations (1983) is a somewhat more diffuse work based on Gregorian chants, but here you can hear the variations principle at work throughout the score, especially when the quartet comments on the material. Archaic-sounding passages abound -- the dreaded parallel fourths and fifths that composition teachers warn against, another example of Brubeck breaking the rules of choral writing for his own expressive purposes. Voice of the Holy Spirit (1985) is the longest of the pieces here, about 52 minutes, and again Brubeck doesn't let anything inhibit his choice of idiom -- a Latin-ish break for the quartet, a gaudy conclusion to Be Strong in the Lord, even a universal children's taunt as the basis of When I Was a Child. Finally, as a brief afterleaf, listeners whisk ahead to 2001, where the then-80-year-old composer looks back with unexpected poignancy in Regret, a lush bittersweet elegy for strings with skillfully wrought counterlines for cellos, capped near the close by a solo from Brubeck in the same vein. Despite his explanation in the booklet ("Perhaps it is an emotion unique to someone who has lived as many decades as I"), one still wonders what moved Brubeck to write this anguished piece, as he seems to have lived an exceptionally fulfilling life. This outpouring of creativity is treated to excellent, spacious Abbey Road SACD sound, deeper than the stereo CD version (which is more brightly lit), with only studio ambience in the rear speakers. And would you believe there is much more unrecorded classical Brubeck on the shelf? ~ Richard S. Ginell, All Music Guide
What The Critics Say
This live CD by the Dave Brubeck Quartet comes from a pair of after-midnight performances in a Manhattan Starbuck's. The musicians seem very stimulated by the odd surroundings, producing an enticing mix of standards, new Brubeck compositions, and the inevitable "Take Five." The jaunty opener, "On the Sunny Side of the Street," gives way to a burning take of "Love for Sale," featuring Bobby Militello's soulful sax. Brubeck wrote the mournful "Elegy" for Norwegian journalist Randi Hultin, who died of cancer before she was able to hear it. The combination of Militello's haunting flute, Michael Moore's matchless arco bass, Randy Jones' soft use of mallets, and the leader's understated piano is powerful enough to hush any audience. The brisk jazz waltz "Don't Forget Me" was inspired by a closing remark over the phone from an old friend, causing Brubeck to immediately sit down and compose the piece on the spot. "I Love Vienna," a jazz waltz taken at a faster clip, shows the influence of Strauss. Although "New Orleans Stomp" is initially powered by a common drum riff heard all over the Crescent City, the main theme is hardly within the "cool" pigeonhole to which many ill-informed critics readily assign Brubeck; this demanding piece is better described as post-bop. "Take Five" has long been a solo feature for Jones (who began continuously working with Brubeck over 22 years earlier, longer than any Brubeck alumni), and he doesn't disappoint the crowd in this fairly brief rendition. In case anyone had ideas of bringing the group back for yet another encore, Brubeck makes his thoughts clear with a playful romp through the chestnut "Show Me the Way to Go Home." Brubeck's excellent liner notes and the numerous photos from the concerts add to the value of this highly recommended CD. ~ Ken Dryden, All Music Guide
'Brubeck in Chattanooga'
Release Date 1/1/2003
Tracks 8
Label Choral Arts Society of Chattanooga
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What The Critics Say
Dave Brubeck has barely scratched the surface when it comes to recording his considerable catalog of sacred works. Because he was so pleased with the performance of Choral Arts of Chattanooga during a concert in 2000, he returned to the city to record this CD with them two years later. Philip Rice, who studied under the brilliant conductor Robert Shaw, works magic with this choir, which handles Brubeck's demanding works in a mostly a cappella setting. Accompanists Jim Wilson ("Psalm 30") and Terry Sanford (heard on "Allelulia") play all the written passages at the composer's request; Brubeck's instrumental role is strictly as a soloist. Brubeck's swinging polytonal arrangement of the Christmas carol "We Three Kings" will be obvious to anyone familiar with his jazz recordings. "Though I Speak With the Tongues of Men and of Angels" is from Brubeck's oratorio "The Voice of the Holy Spirit," and the choir's performance is nothing less than stunning. A brief chorale introduces his "Power Chorale and Fugue," followed by Brubeck's dramatic piano improvisation, segueing into an intricate a cappella fugue. "Yes, We All Have Our Cross to Bear" is a moving work heard in two separate recordings, one straight-ahead, the other in a swing interpretation, though both versions were incorporated into the composer's original conception. "Alleluia," from Brubeck's Roman Catholic Mass "To Hope! A Celebration", tests the skills of the choir and especially accompanist Sanford; both pass with flying colors. The haunting "Regret" was initially scored for strings, but this adaptation for a cappella choir, which sings only the word "regret" along with open vowels, is every bit as powerful. "Psalm 30" is a joyful celebration of the composer's faith, with accompanist Wilson playing the written score and Brubeck taking over midway for yet another brilliant improvisation. This CD is available exclusively through www.choralartsofchattanooga.org. ~ Ken Dryden, All Music Guide
'Jazz at the College of the Pacific, Vol. 2'
Release Date 8/20/2002
Tracks 8
Label Original Jazz Classics
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What The Critics Say
In the '50s, Dave Brubeck managed to accomplish something that few post-World War II jazzmen accomplished: He enjoyed a certain amount of acceptance in the pop market. And the interesting thing is that he did it without taking a pop approach -- the pianist played instrumental jazz interpretations of pop songs, but he didn't play pop versions of pop songs. This 2002 release takes listeners back to a time when Brubeck was at the height of his popularity; recorded live on December 14, 1953, most of these previously unreleased performances are from the same concert that gave listeners the first Jazz at the College of the Pacific. Brubeck's quartet includes alto saxophonist Paul Desmond, bassist Ron Crotty, and drummer Joe Dodge, and this lineup is the essence of cool jazz. Essentially, cool jazz was a form of bebop; Brubeck's cohesive group is definitely playing bop changes on lyrical performances of "How High the Moon," "Love Walked In," and other standards. But they play them in a subtle, relaxed, understated fashion, and that use of subtlety is what makes Vol. 2 cool jazz. Brubeck and Desmond (who always had a gorgeous tone) both swing, but not in an aggressive, intense way -- they were introspective players who realized the value of restraint. In addition to the 1953 performances, this CD contains a bonus track that finds an unaccompanied Brubeck performing "I Found a New Baby" at the same Stockton, CA, college in 1942. At that point, he was still playing swing piano and had yet to become distinctive or recognizable; even so, it's fascinating to hear what he sounded like before becoming well-known. Although not essential, this is a pleasing disc that serious Brubeck devotees will enjoy. ~ Alex Henderson, All Music Guide
'Double Live from the U.S.A. and U.K.'
Release Date 2/27/2001
Tracks 17
Label Telarc
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What The Critics Say
The stockpile of unreleased recordings by Dave Brubeck grew during the 1990s, as Telarc would plan CDs and then change its mind about the order in which to release various titles by the veteran pianist. So this two-CD set is by no means a compilation of leftover material, but some of his finest work during that decade. The first disc consists of songs recorded during the second half of two 1995 concerts in Washington, D.C.'s National Cathedral (music from the first half of these concerts appeared the CD of Brubeck's Mass, To Hope! A Celebration), emphasizing material that the quartet had not played previously. Brubeck's haunting impressionistic introduction to "Body and Soul" is followed by Bobby Militello's lyrical alto sax solo (following in the footsteps of longtime alto saxophonist Paul Desmond). Brubeck's staccato introduction to "Cherokee" is reminiscent of his composition "Pange Lingua March" because he voices it with open fourths and fifths while playing in a different key with each hand (with no net before a live audience); after a turbulent Militello solo, the master pianist shows off his own considerable chops. "What Will I Tell My Heart?" is one of the most surprising tracks, since few musicians actively play this old chestnut; the rollicking interpretation of "On the Sunny Side of the Street" and warm treatment of "Don't Worry 'Bout Me" are also enjoyable. Brubeck revisits his own "Broadway Boss Nova," written for the short-lived television series Mr. Broadway in the early '60s, as well as a more recent work, the poignant ballad "The Things You Never Remember" and the inevitable "Take Five" that is automatically expected by audiences at every Brubeck concert, showcasing drummer Randy Jones, a fixture in the quartet since 1976. The second disc contains selections from the quartet's 1998 tour of Great Britain. "Margie" is another overlooked piece of nostalgia that Brubeck chose from the thousands of tunes stored in his colossal memory (much to the surprise of his group, though they catch on in a hurry). The remaining material will be familiar to those who saw Brubeck in concert during the 1990s: his always humorous "Three to Get Ready," his swinging tribute to another veteran pianist and old friend "Marian McPartland," a longer "Take Five" that is even more exhilarating than the 1995 version, and a delightful romp through "Take the 'A' Train" which showcases his then-new bassist Alec Dancworth's great chops. Of course, the master always has something new up his sleeve since he composes almost daily, although "Be Natural Blues" was so new not even Brubeck had played it previously. An added bonus is that this two-CD set is being sold by Telarc for the price of a single CD. Highly recommended. ~ Ken Dryden, All Music Guide
