JASON PALMER

THE CROSS OVER LIVE IN BROOKLYN

GiantStep Arts

Jason Palmer, trumpet/composer; Mark Turner, tenor Saxophone; Larry Grenadier, bass; Marcus Gilmore, drums.

On Disc #1 or a two-disc set, Jason Palmer opens with a tune called “Budgets Are Moral Documents” (B.A.M.D.) with trumpet only.  Palmer has become the signature artist for the impressive Giant Step Arts label.

Jason Palmer has been accumulating fans and accolades over the past two decades. He won first Prize at the 2009 Carmine Caruso International Jazz Trumpet Solo Competition and has received numerous star reviews in DownBeat Magazine.  In 2018 he was Boston’s Cultural Council Artist Fellow.  This album continues his star-status, spotlighting Palmer’s huge talents as a composer and his all-star chord-less band.  Complimenting Palmer’s dynamic compositions is the tenor saxophonist, Mark Turner who has been working with Palmer for the past decade.  Palmer calls him “one (if not the) single most imitated, never duplicated tenor saxophonists in this music.”

“His tone is immediately recognizable and the depth of his melodicism, soulfulness, and virtuosity all come together to create an endless fountain of inspiration for all artists in my generation and younger,” says Jason Palmer of his bandmate.

One of Palmer’s original compositions is named for Fannie Lou Hamer, an American of color who fought for voting and women’s rights. It is fueled by Gilmores rolling drums. Palmer and Turner harmonize, dipping their horns in and out of the excitement. The featured trumpet solo of Jason Palmer is extraordinary. All of these track are long. Some play over sixteen minutes.

“Do You Know Who YOU Are? Is eleven minutes and nineteen seconds long, recalling a line for Dr. C. West inspired by a meeting with the academic scholar and fiery speaker, Dr. Cornel West. The bass and drums punch out the rhythm like boxers, and so do the horns. This tune becomes a springboard for bassist Larry Grenadier to bounce upon. His solo bass excursion is captivating and met with great audience applause and appreciation.

This music, “The Cross Over: Live in Brooklyn” represents the new series by Giant Step Arts called “Modern Masters and New Horizons.”   Bassist Larry Grenadier and drummer, Marcus Gilmore are certainly part of that series title.  Not only do they support and enhance Jason Palmer’s live performance, along with mark Turner, each brings their own brilliance to the group-sparkle.

Reviewed by Dee Dee McNeil

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