| Simple Song | |
|---|---|
| | |
| Studio album by | |
| Released | March 24, 2009 |
| Recorded | June, 2007 |
| Studio | Castle Oaks Studio, Los Angeles |
| Genre |
|
| Length | 67:40 |
| Label | Sunnyside Records |
| Producer | François Zalacain |
Simple Song is a contemporary jazz album by saxophonist Ben Wendel, released on March 24, 2009. The album features a collection of neo-bop jazz compositions. [1]
Guest musicians on the album include pianists Tigran Hamasyan, Taylor Eigsti, and Adam Benjamin, [2] with guitarist Larry Koonse, bassist Darek Oleszkiewicz, and drummer Nate Wood.
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| All About Jazz | |
| AllMusic | |
Michael Nastos of AllMusic wrote, "these are complex, intricate composed pieces requiring a good deal of rehearsal, and it sounds like they got them right for the recording session. With a combined sense of ease interacting and a great sense of teamwork, this band brings to life a set of heady compositions perfectly suited for the time period at the end of the 2000s." [4] Raul d'Gama Rose, writing for All About Jazz, described the album as "anything but simple in its approach to the idiom of jazz, [with] Wendel sweep[ing] across a sonic landscape with invention [...] thus [having] been able to create a tonal palette of seemingly epic proportions as he pushes his reeds on an endless, dancing journey." [3]
All tracks are written by Ben Wendel except where noted.
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Breath" | 4:43 | |
| 2. | "Simple Song" | 6:58 | |
| 3. | "Not Yet" | 5:53 | |
| 4. | "Chorale" | 1:30 | |
| 5. | "No Thank You Mr. West" | 7:07 | |
| 6. | "Lonnie's Lament" | John Coltrane | 8:45 |
| 7. | "Maupin" | 5:43 | |
| 8. | "Ralph" | 8:16 | |
| 9. | "A Flower Is a Lovesome Thing" | Billy Strayhorn | 5:47 |
| 10. | "Trust Fall" | 6:05 | |
| 11. | "She Never Had" | 6:53 | |
| Total length: | 67:40 | ||