Nel mondo audiofilo e non solo all'etichetta discografica Proprious viene naturale associare Jazz AT The Pawnshop, la serie di inimitalibi cd che per purezza di incisione, profondita' del suono e bellezza artistica sono stati e sono tuttora punto di riferimento per gli audifili piu' esigenti. Sulla stessa frequenza è bene ora inquadrare questo nuovo lavoro edito dalla stessa proprius che per l'occasione presenta un quartetto di tutto rispetto : il batterista Peter Sixtus Johannesson, il chiatarrista Max Schultz, il pianista Bobo Stensson e il bassista Martin Sjostedt. Mentre per Bobo Stensson penso non sia necessario fare alcuna presentazione qualche riga vale la pena spenderla su Johannesson e l'amico Schultz. Entrambi suonano insieme da piu' di un decennio e hanno come punti di riferimento musicale lo stesso Bobo Stensson e Herbie Hancock con cui hanno spesso suonato durante i tour dello stesso in Svezia e Norvegia. Il loro è un jazz cristallino, ritmato, soprattutto godibile ma mai banale. Gli assoli sono pulitissimi, la batteria e il basso la fanno spesso da protagonista ma il piano è sublime, attento, mai invadente accompagnatore di questo lavoro. Gli assoli di Chitarra entrano limpidi al punto giusto, senza virtuosismi ma dando spessore ritmico a questo cd tutto da scoprire. It was in 1988 that Peter Johannesson invited his friend and mentor Herbie Hancock to join him on a tour of Sweden and Norway. Max Schultz naturally joined them on the tour. Peter and Max had been playing together for almost ten years at this time, initially at sporadic gigs but, from the mid 1980s, on a more regular basis. They are both self-taught musicians, something that is becoming much less usual among established musicians today.
The collaboration with Herbie Hancock continued with concerts between 1990 and 1995 and they recorded an album entitled Sixtus which was released as a CD in 2001 under Peter Johannesson's name, Max Schultz contributed with four of the compositions on this CD. Peter Johannesson's next CD, New Life, appeared in 2005, also with Max Schultz collaborating.
At this time Peter and Max performed a succession of concerts with another pianist, Bobo Stenson, who had been an idol of their youth. As they performed together the idea of recording an album with this constellation began to take form: Johannesson & Schultz together with Bobo Stenson. Over the course of a couple of years they produced a series of new compositions from which they made a careful selection for the album. This was recorded in 2008 and has resulted in the present CD. Also performing is bass-player Martin Sjöstedt who was the natural choice for this role. Martin's musicality and authority is much in demand today both in Swedish and international contexts, as will be evident from his performances on this disc.
Peter and Max, who have both performed on innumerable occasions with a diversity of different musicians often return to Bobo Stenson during their conversation; an important source of inspiration to them both as well as of vast importance to them and to musical life in Sweden. Johannesson & Schultz perform with invigorating simplicity and a beautifully down-to-earth presentation that one can listen to again and again - both in the form of this album and in concert.
Tracks :
1. Maria - 2. Way Back - 3. Too Simple - 4. Big McKee - 5. Timeless - 6. The Force - 7. Footloose - 8. Kling - 9. Blues for Elvin - 10. Impressions - 11. Sixtus - 12. Sjöstedts Tolva - 13. Maria (alternative version) - 14. Drums for Katinka
