James Carter, Chasin' the Gypsy - 54m 32s

Tracks & Durations

1. Nuages	5:36
2. La Derniere Bergere (The Last Shepherdess)	6:34
3. Manoir Dr Mes Reves (Django's Castle)	7:30
4. Artillerie Lourde (Heavy Artillery)	6:55
5. Chasin' The Gypsy	4:02
6. Oriental Shuffle	8:04
7. I'll Never Be The Same	7:17
8. Avalon	4:38
9. Imari's Lullaby	3:48

Note: The information about this album is acquired from the publicly available resources and we are not responsible for their accuracy.

Review

For Chasin' the Gypsy, James Carter enlists violinist (and cousin) Regina Carter, drummer Joey Baron, guitar mainstay Jay Berliner, and several others to tackle this homage to Gypsy guitar virtuoso Django Reinhardt. The bustle and muscle are in balance, with accordion, steel-string guitar, bass saxophone, violin, and drums flawlessly chugging through these nine tunes. --Andrew BartlettAt first glance, jazz guitarist Django Reinhardt might seem an unlikely inspiration for a modern jazz saxophonist. But in referencing the fiery gypsy virtuoso (while employing dual acoustic guitarists), James Carter has fashioned his most compelling, fully formed recital as a leader. While his galloping soprano on the title tune enhances Carter's reputation as fiery technical craftsman (all the more joyous for the torrid exchanges with his cousin, violinist Regina Carter), Chasin' the Gypsy showcases his gifts as a torch player, while deepening his connections to the rich timbres, macho articulations, and swinging romanticism of the pre-bebop saxophone tradition. In the process, he finds provocative new applications for forgotten instruments of the 1920s. On "Oriental Shuffle," he elicits a ripe, bulbous tonality from the F Mezzo--like a soprano sax on steroids--carefully layering taut melodic nuggets until busting out in a Djangoish reverie. Even more satisfying is his portrayal of the classic chestnut "I'll Never Be the Same," in which James matches Regina's soaring lyricism by transforming the ungainly bass saxophone from an ugly duckling into a lithesome swan (as he also does on Django's classic "Nuages," with Charlie Giordano's accordion providing authentic period counterpoint). Fans of Carter's timeless tenor saxophone tone won't be disappointed by the tender inflections marking his intimate performance of "Django's Castle" and an original for his freshly minted baby daughter, "Imari's Lullaby." This is a big step up in class for the young heavyweight. --Chip Stern

Other Versions

Albums are mined from the various public resources and can be actually the same but different in the tracks length only. We are keeping all versions now.

Chasin' the Gypsy

Tracks: 9, Disk length: 54m 33s (+0m 1s)

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