John Patitucci Cd recommendations?

fretless bass · #1 10-20-2006, 12:28 PM

Im looking to get one of his cds. can anyone tell me his best work? i know he has a new album out right now.

WJGreer · #2 10-20-2006, 01:29 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Joshua

My faves in gen'l order:

Mistura Fina
Imprint
Now

But they're all good!

They are all good, but interestingly, those three you named could not possibly be more different from one another.

Here might be a primer on his evolution as a player and bandleader.

"John Patitucci"
"On The Corner"
These were the first ones, and he recorded them at the time he was most active with the Elektric Band. There is a lot of participation from the personnel out of that band, and as a result the sound is fairly derivative of the Elektric Band at that time. These albums are the most fusion-esque, and he largely plays electric (a Smith 6 string).

"Sketchbook"
This is a truly outstanding recording. It is very eclectic from a compositional perspective, and it also has a wide variety of players that he hadn't recorded with before. It moves away from fusion on several tunes towards electric improvisational jazz, a little of what might be called mood music, and even a straight ahead tune. There's some fusion here too. Still mostly electric bass, on his Yamaha by now, and a little more acoustic.

"Mistura Fina"
This was an exploration into the fusion of electric jazz and brazilian music. It has a lot of vocal work, some easy to listen to, some not. All electric, I think, and a pretty good album as long as the overall concept appeals to you.

"Heart Of The Bass"
This one was a bit of a departure also, a recording on Chick Corea's Stretch label. It's mostly acoustic, and largely orchestral. I would not start with this one, as it is a lot different musically than everything else he's done.

"Now"
This is another great one. There is a defined move towards straight ahead-derived tunes here, and much more acoustic bass than ever before. Some excellent collaboration with Scofield, Vincent Colaiuta, and others. All in all, a nicely balanced album that would win him some new fans.

"The Hudson Project"
Patitucci wasn't the bandleader on this one, but it's such a good intro to his music and playing that I had to include it. It's a recorded masterclass performance with Patitucci, Erskine, Mintzer, and John Abercrombie. They play one or two of each person's compositions, and one of John's is "The Well", which also appeared on Imprint. Great.

"One More Angel"
This is a concept album, largely influenced by the prenatal death of John's child. The grief, mourning, and outpouring of emotion is palpable from the beginning of this to the end. If you are an emotional person, as I am, this record will bring you to tears. Almost all acoustic. Absolutely stunning.

"Imprint"
"Communion"
"Songs, Stories, and Spirituals"
On these last three, Patitucci really took a left turn in compositional direction. The band is much larger, there are a few non-traditional instruments involved, and a decidedly Latin influence in the compositions. On "Spirituals", a number of the songs have vocals, some of which are rather out there. John also began to use a more mellow electric bass tone (still the Yamaha bass though) and plays acoustic at least as much as electric. I can't say I like these three recordings, certainly not the last one, as much as the others. But that is me.

Hopefully this helps. I haven't heard his new one yet, but I notice it is a smaller group, so I suspect the direction is a new one.

Richard Lindsey · #3 10-20-2006, 03:12 PM

Good summary by Will. There's also a record called, IIRC, Another World, which is largely African influenced. Armand Sabal-Lecco plays with John on a few cuts on this one.

Sketchbook is probably my favorite of the ones I've heard. I haven't checked out all of his later stuff, though I do have Now.

jerry · #4 10-20-2006, 04:41 PM

+1 on the The Hudson Project, that album seemed to go un-noticed and John sounds great as always on electric and upright.

Bassist4Life · #5 10-20-2006, 07:04 PM

Are you looking for his solo projects or his work with other artists? This guy has so many recording credits.

http://music.barnesandnoble.com/sear...TR=70872&SIG=A

Joe

c-ba55 · #6 10-20-2006, 10:10 PM

I just saw him tonight, with the band he recorded the album with, playing songs from the album. Some of it was gorgeous, most of it was bad-ass. Some of it was a little uptight. Brian Blade is an amazingly creative and forceful drummer. He clearly inspires the band to go beyond. The guitar player was capable of playing quite nicely, but mostly chose to play a breathless phraseless endless series of notes. The sax player wasn't there.
There was an even mix between electric and acoustic. His acoustic sounded great. His electric, a little bland. He bowed the melody to one Spanish song, that was absolutely gorgeous. And he played a Monk tune that really got funked up. Those were the highlights I'd say.

**j-raj** · #7 10-22-2006, 03:42 PM

I've seen him with Blade as well, Danilo Perez was playing piano on that gig... as was Wayne Shorter!!!

One of my favorite CD's with John is Central Avenue (it's Danilo Perez's CD)

WillBuckingham · #8 10-22-2006, 05:56 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by fretless bass

Im looking to get one of his cds. can anyone tell me his best work? i know he has a new album out right now.

Do you have any of his recordings as a sideman? I would recommend "Akoustik Band" as the best place to start.

Larry99 · #9 10-23-2006, 12:32 PM

Mistura Fina is some of my favorite music, not just by JP but by anyone (...note I'm a big fan of Brazilian music in general).

**KJung** · #10 10-23-2006, 04:31 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by WJGreer

They are all good, but interestingly, those three you named could not possibly be more different from one another.

Here might be a primer on his evolution as a player and bandleader.

"John Patitucci"
"On The Corner"
These were the first ones, and he recorded them at the time he was most active with the Elektric Band. There is a lot of participation from the personnel out of that band, and as a result the sound is fairly derivative of the Elektric Band at that time. These albums are the most fusion-esque, and he largely plays electric (a Smith 6 string).

"Sketchbook"
This is a truly outstanding recording. It is very eclectic from a compositional perspective, and it also has a wide variety of players that he hadn't recorded with before. It moves away from fusion on several tunes towards electric improvisational jazz, a little of what might be called mood music, and even a straight ahead tune. There's some fusion here too. Still mostly electric bass, on his Yamaha by now, and a little more acoustic.

"Mistura Fina"
This was an exploration into the fusion of electric jazz and brazilian music. It has a lot of vocal work, some easy to listen to, some not. All electric, I think, and a pretty good album as long as the overall concept appeals to you.

"Heart Of The Bass"
This one was a bit of a departure also, a recording on Chick Corea's Stretch label. It's mostly acoustic, and largely orchestral. I would not start with this one, as it is a lot different musically than everything else he's done.

"Now"
This is another great one. There is a defined move towards straight ahead-derived tunes here, and much more acoustic bass than ever before. Some excellent collaboration with Scofield, Vincent Colaiuta, and others. All in all, a nicely balanced album that would win him some new fans.

"The Hudson Project"
Patitucci wasn't the bandleader on this one, but it's such a good intro to his music and playing that I had to include it. It's a recorded masterclass performance with Patitucci, Erskine, Mintzer, and John Abercrombie. They play one or two of each person's compositions, and one of John's is "The Well", which also appeared on Imprint. Great.

"One More Angel"
This is a concept album, largely influenced by the prenatal death of John's child. The grief, mourning, and outpouring of emotion is palpable from the beginning of this to the end. If you are an emotional person, as I am, this record will bring you to tears. Almost all acoustic. Absolutely stunning.

"Imprint"
"Communion"
"Songs, Stories, and Spirituals"
On these last three, Patitucci really took a left turn in compositional direction. The band is much larger, there are a few non-traditional instruments involved, and a decidedly Latin influence in the compositions. On "Spirituals", a number of the songs have vocals, some of which are rather out there. John also began to use a more mellow electric bass tone (still the Yamaha bass though) and plays acoustic at least as much as electric. I can't say I like these three recordings, certainly not the last one, as much as the others. But that is me.

Hopefully this helps. I haven't heard his new one yet, but I notice it is a smaller group, so I suspect the direction is a new one.

Nice Patitucci primer! I can't really listen to those early electric recordings any more (a little too 'Weckl wanky' sounding for me... although I dug them when they first came out). I still totally dig Mistura Fina. I also enjoy 'Heart of the Bass' a lot for it's just being totally unique and quirky.