ESPERANZA SPALDING - Junjo (2006) FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

The debut recording by acoustic upright bassist and vocalist Esperanza Spalding, a native of Portland, OR, residing in Boston, MA, is an exercise in joy and freedom. Well rendered for such a very young musician, it's quite notable, considering the certainty of her concept and clarity of her vision. While steeped in contemporary jazz, there are Latin flavors, unabashed free moments, and some implied and direct swing. Further, it is an expression of her well-being, optimism, and future hope for her life in this music. Also in her peer group, pianist Aruan Ortiz and drummer Francisco Mela add a hundredfold to this music and establish themselves as leaders-to-be, and are quite capable partners for Spalding's wonderful sounds. The first piece, a take of the Jimmy Rowles evergreen "The Peacocks," lets you know something special is going on. Spalding's bass leads out with the probing piano of Ortiz as wordless vocals and a modal jam all precede the melody, followed by a free section. The imagination quotient of this interpretation is off the charts. "Mompouana" is a most impressive circular tune surrounding the sweetness and light of Spalding's voice in a 9/8 time signature, choppy piano motifs, upper to midrange drama, and thoughtful, intricate secondary lines. In their ultimate playful state, "Perazuán" and "Perazela" show Spalding's ability to scat, with Ortiz on the former and furiously alongside Mela on the latter track. The other covers are a darker-than-the-original rendition of Chick Corea's neo-bopper "Humpty Dumpty" and the personable, lighthearted "Loro," written by Egberto Gismonti. "Two Bad," with a feeling reminiscent of the standard "Alone Together," is a brittle, quirky, and unpredictable tune that is the only instrumental of the lot. Spalding sings no lyric content whatsoever; her style is all natural, sensual, and precious. Whether she is coerced to sing songs in the future is to be determined. For sure, she is an accomplished bassist, musician, and original thinker. Junjo is an auspicious beginning that should catch the ears of any lover of great music. by Michael G. Nastos 

Tracklist:
1 The Peacocks 7:53
Written-By – Jimmy Rowles
2 Loro 5:03
Written-By – Egberto Gismonti
3 Humpty Dumpty
Written-By – Chick Corea
4 Mompouana 7:48
Written-By – Aruán Ortiz
5 Perazuán 3:32
Written-By – Aruán Ortiz, Esperanza Spalding
6 Junjo 5:10
Written-By – Esperanza Spalding
7 Cantora De Yala 4:52
Written-By – Gustavo Leguizamón, Manuel Castilla
8 Two Bad 6:46
Written-By – Esperanza Spalding
9 Perazela 1:33
Written-By – Esperanza Spalding, Francisco Mela
Credits:
Bass – Esperanza Spalding
Drums – Francisco Mela
Lead Vocals – Esperanza Spalding
Piano – Aruán Ortiz
Producer – Esperanza Spalding

ESPERANZA SPALDING - Esperanza (2008) FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

Bassist, vocalist, and composer Esperanza Spalding's eponymous release on Heads Up International is touted on the Concord Label Group's website as her debut recording. This is patently untrue. In fact, if it weren't for her actual debut , 2006's Junjo on Spain's Ayva imprint, this set may not have existed at all. Junjo showcased Spalding as a leader, playing in an acoustic trio with pianist Aruan Ortiz and drummer Francisco Mela singing wordlessly over bubbling Latin and Afro-Cuban melodies and rhythms. Though written by Brazilian legend Milton Nasciemento and featuring backing vocalists and additional percussion to the bass, piano, and drum format, Esperanza's opening track, "Ponta De Areia" resembles the sound and M.O. of the earlier album quite a bit. This is on purpose, as Spalding simply nods to one of the many places she comes from musically. The track, with its languid, nursery rhyme-like melody and beautifully understated instrumental accompaniment, gently opens the listener to an aural experience that's quite unlike anything else out there. Spalding sings in three languages here -- English, Spanish, and Portuguese -- she plays bass, does the arranging, and acts as her own producer on this wildly diverse and exceptionally well-executed set. How does a 23-year-old get all that control? Simple: she's a prodigy; she is a seasoned session player (she's worked with Joe Lovano, Pat Metheny, and Patti Austin to name just three), and she's a faculty member at the Berklee College of Music.

The ambition on display on Esperanza is not blind; it's deeply intuitive, and her focus brings out the adventure on the album in all the right ways. By a lesser musician, even attempting something like this would have been disastrous. A core band consisting of pianist Leo Genovese, percussionist Jamey Haddad, and drummer Otis Brown backs Spalding. She follows the Nasciemento cut with her own fingerpopping midtempo ballad "I Know You Know," where her crystal clear contralto walks a phrasing tightrope between near scat, classic jazz, and Latin soul singing. The layers of hand percussion and knotty pianism fill the middle as her bassline and drums hold down a constant skittering thrum for the lyrics to balance on. But she can write and sing straight ballads as well. "Fall In," a seemingly simple duet where her voice over Genovese's piano are the only ornaments, is a stellar example and also displays a very sophisticated and slippery sense of wordcraft and a gorgeous melodic sensibility. "I Adore You," featuring Horacio "El Negro" Hernandez in one of his two appearances on drums, offers another example of Spalding's wordless vocalizing; it is a popping Brazilian samba-cum-rhumba with a snappy backing chorus of Brown, Gretchen Parlato, and Theresa Perez. They help her move the smoking piano and the shuffling, time-shifting drums of Hernandez on the choruses. Spalding's bass part here is anything but basic, it's startling in its rhythmic and lyric invention as it adds another harmonic counterpart to the piano and percussive textures. New Orleans saxophonist Donald Harrison performs in one of his two guest spots on the provocative and sassy jazz tune "She Got to You." With a quick, even-burning tempo, there are traces of Betty Carter, Ella Fitzgerald, and even Blossom Dearie in Spalding's phrasing. For all of the hard-driving percussion and the track's boppish tempo, it is wonderfully accessible. "Precious," played with her trio (including some nice Rhodes work by Genovese) is like a mirror image; it's lithe, new-soul melody line flirts with jazz in the arrangement but stays on the pop side of the fence. If radio would get behind this it would be a monster. "Mela" is a wailing, post-bop instrumental with Hernandez on drums and guest Ambrose Akinmusire on trumpet. Check Spalding's bass solo here, it, like the tune, is a burner. In sum, Esperanza sounds like the work of a much older, more experienced player, singer, and songwriter. Spalding not only has these gifts in natural abundance but is disciplined in her execution as well. On this recording she seeks to widen her musical adventure at every turn, but she does it with such with taste, refinement, and a playful sense of humor that virtually anyone who encounters this offering will find not only much to delight in, but plenty to be amazed by as well. by Thom Jurek 

 Tracklist

1. Ponta de Areia (Milton Nascimento, Fernando Brant) - 5:39

2. I Know You Know - 3:46

3. Fall In - 3:57

4. I Adore You - 7:27

5. Cuerpo y Alma (Body & Soul) (Edward Heyman, Robert Sour) - 8:01

6. She Got to You - 4:29

7. Precious - 4:24

8. Mela - 6:57

9. Love in Time - 5:47

10. Espera - 4:40

11. If That's True - 7:33

12. Samba em Preludio (Vinícius de Moraes, Baden Powell) - 5:11

All songs written and composed by Esperanza Spalding, except where noted

Personnel

Esperanza Spalding - electric bass, acoustic bass, vocals

Leo Genovese - piano, Wurlitzer electric piano (track 7), Fender Rhodes piano (track 10)

Jamey Haddad - percussion

Otis Brown - drums

Horacio Hernandez - drums (tracks 4 and 8)

Ambrose Akinmusire - trumpet (tracks 8 and 11)

Donald Harrison - saxophone (tracks 6 and 11)

Gretchen Parlato - background vocals (tracks 1 and 4)