Kris Davis Trio this weekend. Diving into what’s currently going on; new faces, new ideas, new artists – I can report back that the outlook is good. Jazz continues to move in good places and the atmosphere is positive, responsive and loving.
Kris Davis was born in Vancouver in 1980 and grew up in Calgary, Alberta. She studied classical piano from the age of six and discovered jazz while a high school student. She transcribed performances by pianists Herbie Hancock and Keith Jarrett. She later reported that, “By the eighth grade I knew I wanted to be a jazz musician.” She later majored in jazz piano at the University of Toronto.
Her bandmates on this gig include Robert Hurst on bass and Jonathan Blake, drums.
Robert Hurst played guitar early in his career before concentrating on bass. He worked with Out of the Blue in 1985 and also did work with musicians such as Tony Williams, Mulgrew Miller, Harry Connick Jr., Geri Allen, Russell Malone, and Steve Coleman. From 1986 to 1991 Hurst played in Wynton Marsalis’s ensemble, and played with Branford Marsalis in the early 1990s. He was also a member of The Tonight Show Band. His debut as a leader, 1993’s Robert Hurst Presents, reached No. 13 on the Billboard Top Jazz Albums chart. He currently teaches jazz bass at the University of Michigan.
Johnathan Blake, one of the most accomplished drummers of his generation, has also proven himself a complete and endlessly versatile musician. Blake’s gift for composition and band leading reflects years of live and studio experience across the aesthetic spectrum. Heralded by NPR Music as “the ultimate modernist,” he has collaborated with Pharoah Sanders, Ravi Coltrane, Tom Harrell, Hans Glawischnig, Avishai Cohen, Donny McCaslin, Linda May Han Oh, Jaleel Shaw, Chris Potter, Maria Schneider, Alex Sipiagin, Kris Davis and countless other distinctive voices. DownBeat once wrote, “It’s a testament to Blake’s abilities that he makes his presence felt in any context.” A frequent presence on Blue Note records over the past several years, Blake has contributed his strong, limber pulse and airy precision to multiple leader releases from Blue Note artists including Dr. Lonnie Smith’s Breathe (2021), All in My Mind (2018) and Evolution (2016) and Kenny Barron’s Concentric Circles (2018), the latter whose trio Blake has been a vital member for nearly 15 years.
Put ’em all together and it spells magic.
My advice is to grab her latest album, Run The Gauntlet – but also dive into her catalog, which never hurts and always helps.
Right now – take a leap.
