CD Reviews

Herbie Hancock

River: The Joni Letters | Verve

By JON GARELICK | September 24, 2007

3.5 Stars

Herbie Hancock with an all-star cast of guest vocalists purveying Joni Mitchell would seem to promise nothing more than a slick pop crossover. But Herbie isn’t fooling around — the guest stars are here, yes, but Hancock, fronting a quintet that includes his old friend Wayne Shorter as well as Dave Holland, drummer Vinnie Colaiuta, and guitarist Lionel Loueke, is stretching out, with languid, meditative takes on the Mitchell songbook. “Court and Spark” (with Norah Jones) runs 7:35, a piano-solo intro followed by verses broken with extensive interplay between the pianist and Shorter on soprano. For “Both Sides Now,” Hancock dispenses with vocals altogether, turning the tune abstract with ambiguous harmonies and the nubby textures of Shorter’s tenor. Which isn’t to say that there isn’t great singing here. “Edith and the Kingpin” rides on Tina Turner’s church-quality diction, jazzy phrasing, and rich vibrato; “Amelia” exploits Luciana Souza’s dark, full lower register; Mitchell herself offers a wry “Tea Leaf Prophecy”; Leonard Cohen recites “The Jungle Line” like Beat poetry. Only Corinne Bailey Rae lacks the weight for “River.” Hancock supplements the Mitchell pieces with Ellington’s “Solitude” and Shorter’s “Nefertiti.” He’s hearing Mitchell not as pop but as deep jazz.

Herbie Hancock | “A Celebration of Jazz & Joyce” | Symphony Hall, 301 Mass Ave, Boston | Sept 28 | 888.266.1200

Related: Three for the road, Skimming the cream, Herbie Hancock, et al., More

Topics: CD Reviews , Entertainment, Music, Norah Jones, More

| More

ARTICLES BY JON GARELICK

MARY HALVORSON'S ENCHANTED WOOD; PLUS, BEN POWELL'S NEW CD | May 31, 2012
When guitarist Mary Halvorson began taking lessons with Joe Morris as an undergraduate at Wesleyan University, she was excited about the prospect of playing duos with one of her guitar heroes.

THE FRINGE AT 40 | May 15, 2012
"I'm feeling a little light-headed," George Garzone told the audience last Saturday at the Boston Conservatory Theater, closing his eyes and bringing a hand to his brow.

THE 2012 NEW ORLEANS JAZZ & HERITAGE FESTIVAL | May 04, 2012
New Orleans Notes

ESPERANZA SPALDING’S “SOCIETY” | April 18, 2012
The first time I was knocked out by Esperanza Spalding, she wasn't even playing — she was talking.

WALT WHITMAN VIA FRED HERSCH | April 19, 2012
The pianist and composer Fred Hersch first encountered the poetry of Walt Whitman as a student at New England Conservatory in 1976.