Guitarist PETER LEITCH Releases New Live Album,
California Concert, July 16 on Jazz House Records
Quartet Features Bassist David Williams, Along with
Late Musicians, Pianist John Hicks and Drummer Billy Higgins
"Leitch's signature remains his warm-toned, saxophonic
single note lines which he spins with fluidity, harmonic
sophistication and driving swing." - Bill Milkowski, JazzTimes
"His warm, singing lines...have both a melodic grace and a
rhythmic strength." - John S. Wilson, New York Times
"Peter
Leitch has been turning out consistently tasty, relentlessly swinging
straightahead jazz albums for 12 years...marked by fluid phrasing,
rhythmic drive, romantic lyricisim..." - Guitar Player
California Concert (JH 7004), the fourth release on the artist-owned Jazz House label, captures the Peter Leitch Quartet in an incredibly strong live performance at California State University, Fresno.
Leitch's bandmates for this concert include his friend and long-time musical associate pianist John Hicks, New York bassist David Williams, and jazz legend Billy Higgins
on drums. This very fortuitous coming together of musical minds is made
more ephemeral through the knowledge that with the passing of Hicks and
Higgins, it was an occasion that will never be repeated. "I remember
this concert as being one of the great musical experiences of my life,"
Peter said of the concert, which took place on May 1, 1999.
"Fortunately, someone had the foresight to record it."
The
potent chemistry among these four veterans is palpable from the opening
bars of Bird's "Relaxin' at Camarillo" to Leitch's own tribute to an
early mentor, "A Blues for Ivan Symonds." The full-set recording also
features Hicks's classic "After the Morning," their friend Walter
Booker's "Book's Bossa," the Strayhorn-Ellington favorite "Isfahan," and
a piano-guitar medley of Ellington's "In a Sentimental Mood" and "Warm
Valley."
The
recording was made by an avid fan and Leitch took it to master engineer
Allan Tucker in New York to try to clean up the audio to make the
concert set releasable. The result is a labor of love-great music played
full out (no tune is under nine minutes)-well worth the listener's
time. Liner notes are written by bassist Dwayne Burno, who currently
works and records with the guitarist.
Off the Books: A Jazz Life
Coincidental with the album release is the publication of Peter Leitch's memoir Off the Books: A Jazz Life
by Vehicule Press in Montreal. Slated for early summer release in
Canada and a September launch in the U.S., in it the author recounts in
vivid detail a life lived in search of excellence in music and art,
learning his craft on the bandstand in the days before jazz education,
while battling depression and drug addiction. His depiction of the
Montreal of his youth reveals a long-gone vibrant club scene in that
city. Leitch's moves, first to Toronto in 1977 and then to his present
home , New York City, in 1982 are also recounted in detail. There is a
great deal of humor in some of his recollections and observations, and
more than a few hard truths leavened with bits of absurdist fantasy.
Watch for it.
A launch party is planned in early September for the album and book at Walker's in TriBeCa, home of Peter Leitch's long-running Sunday night duo gig.
Peter Leitch Quartet· California Concert
Jazz House · Release Date: July 16, 2013
For more information on Peter Leitch, please visit: PeterLeitch.com
Information and press materials (including album covers, promotional photos and bios)
on all DL Media artists can be found at our new website: dlmediamusic.com
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