Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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35 of 35 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
In lyrical, reflective mood. , 16 Feb 2003
Bill Evans had a distinctive way with a slow ballad which became highly influential; so one can understand why, in the early sixties, his producer wanted to make an all-ballad Evans album. He created the album by extracting the slower tempoed pieces from this recording session under the title 'Moonbeams', publishing the remaining tracks from the session on a companion album, 'How My Heart Sings'. Both are highly recommended.
The risk of monotony on an all-ballad album is avoided partly because of the intense concentration of Evans's playing but also through the variety of the material itself. It also helps that the two Evans compositions vary the pace by being quicker-tempoed as well as being different in character: "Re: Person I Knew" is a modal theme with a slow introduction which subtly modulates into a gently swinging solo; "Very Early" is one of Evans's jazz waltzes, slowish but again gently swinging.
Since everything on this album is beautifully played, favourite tracks are very much a matter of personal preference. For me, the briefest track: "I Fall in Love Too Easily", is also one of the most affecting, beginning gently but building up to a kind of contained passion expressed through the rhythmic intensity of the playing. It's hard to imagine the Tadd Dameron composition "If You Could See Me Now" being better played and some of the more familiar standard tunes like "Polka Dots and Moonbeams" and "It Might As Well Be Spring" gain so much from the Evans treatment that you think of him not so much as playing them but as making them his own.
A word too for the sensitive playing of bassist Chuck Israels and drummer Paul Motian, both of whom on their various recordings with Evans had an almost telepathic rapport with the pianist, particularly at a slow tempo. What they are doing here may sound elementary, but try imagining what the music would be like without them and you can hear how much the success of the music depends on their contributions.
This is an album you can return to again and again and continue to find in it fresh subtleties. If you are building a Bill Evans collection, this is an essential purchase. And if you like Evans in this lyrical, reflective mood, I would recommend that you look up my reviews of the albums 'Undercurrent', 'You Must Believe in Spring' and a compilation by Verve titled 'Quiet Now: Never Let Me Go'. There are also some excellent slow ballad performances on a CD on the Belgian 'Jazz Hour' label titled 'Autumn Leaves: a jazz hour with Bill Evans' (from which "What Are You Doing for the Rest of Your Life?" is one of my favourite Evans performances).
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15 of 15 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A classic by a great ballad stylist, 29 Nov 2001
Like the John Coltrane Ballads album (also strongly recommended) this album is a rare example of a jazz album made up exclusively of ballads. Evans is one of the few musicians who could carry it off - the tunes have a consistent mood and dynamics, but the intelligence and intensity of Evan's playing avoids the blandness which might have affected a lesser artist. The overall effect is also helped by the fact that the album was recorded together with the faster, more swinging album "How my heart sings", with the trio alternating the ballads on "Moonbeams" with the more straight-ahead tunes on "How my heart sings". "Polkadots and moonbeams" is a particular favourite. Evans is also one of those artists where, if you like one album, you'll probably like almost anything he's produced, particularly anything up to 1965. For starters, check out "Sunday at the Village Vanguard", "Waltz for Debby" or "Trio 64", not forgetting Evan's major role in the landmark Miles Davis album "Kind of Blue".
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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Evans failing at what he usually did best, 4 Feb 2009
I owned this album for a long time. Somehow I always thought it was great - I mean, it had to be, right? Bill Evans, the greatest master of lyrical piano jazz, doing an all-ballad album, how could that not be great?
Then I realized I never actually listened to it. Often put it on, but inevitably stopped paying attention, turned it down, reduced it to background noise. These last days I made an effort not to do that, and found out what is wrong with this record.
First off, the sound is truly annoying. This is a 24 bit remaster , but the piano has no sparkle. Also, the bass is the most boomy, over pronounced and detail-less bass on any CD I own. This alone makes this less than pleasurable to listen to. (Maybe this was to boost Isreals as a successor to LaFaro?)
More importantly, the music seems mainstream-like, lacking tension. And no, that is not necessarily the case with ballads! In fact, Bill Evans' ballad playing is usually subtle, complex in mood and rich in tension. But not here. This is music for the masses, if Evans ever recorded any.
Finally, the selection of material is not impressive. These are far from the most beautiful ballads Evans has recorded. In fact, if you need an all-ball Evans release, I'd even suggest you get "Evans for lovers" or the likes, before you get this one.
This recording was made on the same date that produced "How my heart sings", which is a much, much finer effort. Strange, how even the best will sometimes fail - and fail at what they usually do best!
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