This is a recording that finds Han the Man of the dynamite drums "behaving himself," as he is fond of saying. He only behaves himself if he finds the situation really warrants it, such as in the case of a pianist playing some really straightforward, honest, and no-jive music.
Jazz
piano is often a realm of posers and fakers, whether they are flopping their hands around in an attempt to sound like
Cecil Taylor
or stringing along pentatonic scales with
Herbie Hancock
on their mind. The Swiss Miss
Schweizer
has absolutely developed her own style, going in the course of her career into piano-pounding and string-scraping free-form improvisation but by the time of this recording pursuing a slightly more mellow, aged-in-the-bottle elegance. Despite his reputation for disruption,
Bennink
is probably the best drummer possible for music such as this, as he provides
swing
without clutter and power without any loss of control. With recording pro
Peter Pfister
aiming the microphones, the sound is sure to be pristine, and doubling that pleasure is the fact that this is a live recording, meaning tougher and more durable than a studio session. The program balances improvised pieces with original tunes, then a touch of drum soloing, then a pair of happy standards to bring down the curtain. ~ Eugene Chadbourne