Portrait in Jazz | ||||
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Studio album by | ||||
Released | 1960 | |||
Recorded | December 28, 1959 | |||
Studio | Reeves Sound Studios, New York City | |||
Genre | Jazz | |||
Length | 43:20 (original LP) 61:13 (CD reissue) | |||
Label | Riverside RLP 12-315 | |||
Producer | Orrin Keepnews | |||
The Bill Evans Trio chronology | ||||
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Portrait in Jazz is the fifth studio album by American jazz pianist Bill Evans as a leader, released in 1960. It is the first of only two studio albums to be recorded with his famous trio featuring bassist Scott LaFaro and drummer Paul Motian.
Eight months after his successful collaboration with Miles Davis on the album Kind of Blue , Evans recorded Portrait in Jazz with a new group (the Bill Evans Trio) that helped change the direction of modern jazz.
Most noticeably, LaFaro's bass is promoted from a mere accompanying instrument to one of almost equal status to the piano (though not to the extent that it would be on later albums such as Sunday at the Village Vanguard ). It is one of Evans' more up-tempo and swinging albums (the presence of several ballads notwithstanding).
Review scores | |
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Source | Rating |
Down Beat | [1] |
Allmusic | [2] |
Mojo | (no rating) [3] |
Encyclopedia of Popular Music | [4] |
Tom Hull | A− [5] |
Jazzwise | [6] |
The Penguin Guide to Jazz Recordings | [7] |
Reviewing it for Allmusic, music critic Scott Yanow wrote of the album: "... the influential interpretations were far from routine or predictable at the time. LaFaro and Motian were nearly equal partners with the pianist in the ensembles... A gem." [2] Danny Eccleston of Mojo wrote: "Portrait In Jazz - Evans' fifth record as a band leader - gets you every which way. At its least great, it is merely brilliant... But what makes Evans extra-extra-special is the way his playing drags you in and shares the vulnerability at its core. Oh, the humanity!" [3]
Bonus tracks on CD reissue:
William John Evans was an American jazz pianist and composer who worked primarily as the leader of his trio. His use of impressionist harmony, interpretation of traditional jazz repertoire, block chords, and trademark rhythmically independent, "singing" melodic lines continues to influence jazz pianists today.
Rocco Scott LaFaro was an American jazz double bassist known for his work with the Bill Evans Trio. LaFaro broke new ground on the instrument, developing a countermelodic style of accompaniment rather than playing traditional walking basslines, as well as virtuosity that was practically unmatched by any of his contemporaries. Despite his short career, he remains one of the most influential jazz bassists, and was ranked number 16 on Bass Player magazine's top 100 bass players of all time.
Explorations is an album by jazz pianist Bill Evans that was originally released on Riverside label in 1961. The album won the Billboard Jazz Critics Best Piano LP poll for 1961.
Sunday at the Village Vanguard is a live album by jazz pianist and composer Bill Evans and his Trio consisting of Evans, bassist Scott LaFaro, and drummer Paul Motian. Released in 1961, the album is routinely ranked as one of the best live jazz recordings of all time.
Waltz for Debby is a live album by jazz pianist and composer Bill Evans and his trio consisting of Evans, bassist Scott LaFaro, and drummer Paul Motian. It was released in 1962.
Moon Beams is a 1962 album by jazz musician Bill Evans, and the first trio album recorded by Evans after the death of bassist Scott LaFaro.
On Green Dolphin Street is a record album credited to jazz musician Bill Evans. It was released in 1977 through the Victor Music Industries Inc. Japanese label as an imprint for Riverside. The songs were recorded in 1959.
Further Conversations with Myself is a 1967 album by jazz pianist Bill Evans. All the pieces are solo with piano overdubs, a method Evans used on his earlier release Conversations with Myself. It was reissued on CD by Verve in 1999.
Monk in Motian is a 1988 album by American jazz drummer Paul Motian, his first to be released on the German JMT label and his 11th as a bandleader. The album features ten compositions by Thelonious Monk performed by Motian with his longtime trio, guitarist Bill Frisell and tenor saxophonist Joe Lovano. Pianist Geri Allen and tenor saxophonist Dewey Redman also appear. The album was reissued in 2002 on the Winter & Winter label.
At Shelly's Manne-Hole is a live album by American jazz pianist Bill Evans, released in 1963 as his last recording for the Riverside label. The trio featured Chuck Israels, who followed Scott LaFaro on bass in autumn 1961, and Larry Bunker on drums, who just joined the reformed trio, after Paul Motian had left. An additional eight performances recorded during the trio's May, 1963 engagement at Shelly's Manne-Hole were released on the album Time Remembered.
Trio '65 is a studio album by American jazz pianist Bill Evans and his Trio, released in 1965.
Bill Evans Trio with Symphony Orchestra is an album by American jazz pianist Bill Evans and his trio, released in 1966. The group is accompanied by an orchestra arranged and conducted by Claus Ogerman.
What's New is an album by jazz pianist Bill Evans with flautist Jeremy Steig which was released in 1969 on the Verve label.
"Waltz for Debby" is a jazz standard composed by pianist Bill Evans. He recorded it as a solo piano piece on his album New Jazz Conceptions (1956). Lyrics were written by Gene Lees. "Debby" in the composition's title refers to Evans's niece, Debby Evans.
Jazzhouse is a live album by jazz pianist Bill Evans with Eddie Gómez and Marty Morell recorded at the Jazzhus Montmartre in Copenhagen in 1969 but not released until the 1980s on the Milestone label. The same concert also produced the album You're Gonna Hear From Me.
The Tokyo Concert is a live album by jazz pianist Bill Evans with Eddie Gómez and Marty Morell recorded at the Yūbin Chokin Hall in Tokyo, Japan in 1973 and released on the Fantasy label.
The Paris Concert: Edition One is a live album by jazz pianist Bill Evans with Marc Johnson and Joe LaBarbera recorded in Paris, France in 1979 and originally released on the Elektra/Musician label. Additional recordings from this concert were released as The Paris Concert: Edition Two.
Someday My Prince Will Come is an album by jazz pianist Wynton Kelly featuring performances by Kelly with Paul Chambers or Sam Jones and Jimmy Cobb recorded in 1961 and one track with Lee Morgan and Wayne Shorter from 1959 released by the Vee-Jay label in 1961. Additional performances from these sessions were released as Wynton Kelly!.
Turn Out the Stars: The Final Village Vanguard Recordings is a six-CD box set live album by jazz pianist Bill Evans with Marc Johnson and Joe LaBarbera recorded over four nights at the Village Vanguard in New York City in 1980 and released on CD on the Warner Bros. label in 1996. A concurrent LP release was made on Mosaic.
Letter to Evan is a live album by jazz pianist Bill Evans with Marc Johnson and Joe LaBarbera recorded at Ronnie Scott's Jazz Club in 1980 about two months before his death. It was released on the Dreyfus Jazz label.