Same Mother

• Artist: Jason Moran
• Rating:
• Release Date: February 01, 2005
• Genre: Jazz

Review

Boundary-pushing pianist Jason Moran expands his sound yet again with a blend of modern electric and acoustic blues on Same Mother. Featuring longtime bassist Tarus Mateen and drummer Nasheet Waits, Moran's seventh album also includes guitarist Marvin Sewell. An equally adventurous musician, Sewell adds a modern blues sound to Moran's usual mélange of post-bop, classical, New Orleans jazz, and funk. The results are raw, inspired, and frankly not wholly pleasing as Sewell's crisp acoustic attack does not always blend well with Moran's equally naked piano chops. However, for fans of both forward-thinking jazz and roots music, Same Mother -- a conceptual nod to the unifying notion that we are all ultimately descended from one mother -- holds considerable surprises. Notably, Moran's "Gangsterism On the Rise" is a bumptiously funky avant-garde ride, while his "G Suit Salvation" finds the group wading deep into softly experimental Pat Metheny waters. Similarly, the atmospheric, Arabic-influenced "Restin'" and "Field of the Dead" (which Moran deftly co-opts from Sergei Prokofiev's 1938 score for the Sergei Eisenstein film Alexander Nevsky) are darkly epic country-death ballads featuring Sewell's moaning acoustic slide guitar. ~ Matt Collar, All Music Guide

Tracks

Track Title	Composers	Performers	Time
Gangsterism On the Rise	Jason Moran	Jason Moran	(2:54)
Jump Up	Jason Moran	Jason Moran	(5:48)
Aubade	J. Moran, A. Hill	Jason Moran	(4:29)
G Suit Saltation	Jason Moran	Jason Moran	(6:01)
I'll Play the Blues for You	Jerry Beach	Jason Moran	(7:41)
Fire Waltz	Mal Waldron	Jason Moran	(4:36)
Field of the Dead [From Alexander Nevsky]	Sergei Prokofiev	Jason Moran	(5:19)
Restin'	Jason Moran	Jason Moran	(4:15)
The Field	Alicia Hall Moran	Jason Moran	(4:06)
Gangsterism On the Set	Jason Moran	Jason Moran	(3:39)

Credits

Joe Marciano (Engineer), Joe Marciano (Mixing), Tarus Mateen (Bass (Electric)), Tarus Mateen (Bass (Acoustic)), Tarus Mateen (Musician), Marvin Sewell (Guitar (Acoustic)), Marvin Sewell (Guitar (Electric)), Marvin Sewell (Musician), Allan Tucker (Mastering), Nasheet Waits (Drums), Nasheet Waits (Musician), P.R. Brown (Art Direction), P.R. Brown (Design), P.R. Brown (Photography), Gordon Jee (Creative Director), Jason Moran (Piano), Jason Moran (Producer), Jason Moran (Mastering), Jason Moran (Mixing), Jason Moran (Musician), Yuri Moran (Liner Notes), Louise Holland (Associate Producer), Chris Cofoni (A&R), Perry Greenfield (Product Manager), Monique Chester (Cover Illustration)