"Doors: Chicago Storylines,"
New CD by Alto Saxophonist/Composer
Caroline Davis,
Due for November 6 Release
An Audio Documentary with Original Music,
CD Is a Follow-Up to Davis's 2012 Debut
"Live Work & Play"
Davis & Her Chicago-Based Quartet,
Featuring Guitarist Mike Allemana,
Bassist Matt Ferguson, & Drummer Jeremy Cunningham,
Are Joined by Guests Russ Johnson, Trumpet;
Ron Perrillo, Piano; Katinka Kleijn, Cello
Appearing at the Jazz Gallery, NYC, 11/5;
Constellation, Chicago, 12/5 (10 PM);
Andy's, Chicago, 12/4-5
September 22, 2015
Following the release of her much-praised 2012 debut, Live Work & Play, alto saxophonist and composer Caroline Davis
relocated from Chicago to New York City and got to work on an ambitious
project that had been germinating for seven years. To honor her
eight-year residency in Chicago, she combines spoken stories and
original compositions on her new CD Doors: Chicago Storylines, which will be released by ears&eyes Records on November 6.
Joining her on Doors are longtime members of her Chicago-based quartet. Mike Allemana (guitar) and Matt Ferguson (bass) were both collaborators of the late tenor saxophone legend Von Freeman. Drummer Jeremy Cunningham,
whom Davis met at Freeman's famed New Apartment Lounge session, adds an
energetic counterpart to the rhythm section. "It was important for me
to have a band that played together for a while, improvising and
exploring new directions," Davis states. "You can hear that we really
know each other."
The inspiration for Doors first came in 2007 while Davis was teaching a course on the history of Chicago jazz at Northwestern University. She found
that 1980 to 2000 was "virtually uncharted territory," Davis says.
Eventually she conducted interviews with 15 musicians she'd found
helpful and influential when she was coming up on the Chicago scene
(including Art Davis, George Fludas, Bobby Broom, and Von Freeman,
one of her mentors) to talk about their experiences during that time.
"Hearing these storylines was a joy for all of us," she says, "and
sparked a desire in me to take a journey with my compositional muse."
"Jazz is a collection of oral histories," Davis adds. "We should strive to share more of them."
On Doors, she pairs samples of
musicians telling their favorite stories with her original compositions,
some inspired by themes, others by spoken phrases. "Storylines have
their own ebb and flow," she says. "I hear texture, tone, tension,
release, and variety in them, and I aim to write my pieces in the same
way." For the album, which was recorded in Chicago in 2013, the band
recorded both long pieces and short interludes, uncertain of how it
would all come together. But, with the help of masterful engineer Brian
Schwab and hours of editing in post-production, the interviews and music
melded brilliantly.
"Golden Era," which opens the album, is a
repeating theme that illustrates all these musicians' '80s and '90s
heyday, a time when everyone was part of a community. On "Lincoln Land,"
the band sails through a triumphant melody, finally settling into a
vamp that zones in on Lincoln Avenue, site of many clubs once active in
the jazz community. "Lin," one of Doors' most intimate pieces, features pianist Ron Perrillo. The piece pays tribute to the great Chicago tenorman, Lin Halliday, who played extensively in the '80s and '90s.
Born (1981) and raised in Singapore of European expatriate parents, Caroline Davis
spent early school years in Atlanta, became musically enriched living
in the Dallas-Fort Worth area, and blossomed in Chicago as a
professional musician. After acquiring both a Bachelor of Music in
Jazz and a Bachelor of Science in Psychology at the University of Texas
at Arlington, she bridged those areas in acquiring a Ph.D. in Music
Cognition at Northwestern University in Evanston, Illinois.
In her dissertation, Davis, who counts Wayne Shorter, Charlie Parker, and Chicago native Lee Konitz
among her prime musical influences, looked at the intricate
collaborations musicians form in a scene, and related those connections
to the ways they hear music.
Her experiences paved the way for her impressive and eclectic list of projects. From the folk sounds of Orso to the reggae grooves of Fatbook, the hip-hop and R&B adventures of Maitri and Deep Fayed, and the unique flow of Whirlpool, Davis has been keeping busy. In New York she holds a steady gig with drummer Billy Kaye.
Her CD release shows include the Jazz Gallery in NYC, 11/5; Constellation, Chicago, 12/5 (10pm); and Andy's, Chicago, 12/4-5 (early sets), as New York-Chicago Collective.
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| "Doors: Chicago Storylines" Preview |
Critical acclaim for Caroline Davis's Live Work & Play (2012):
Caroline Davis' debut as a leader
is her second appearance on record overall, so in that sense the
Chicagoan comes out of nowhere. She arrives, however, with total
self-confidence.
--Michael J. West, JazzTimes
Her long-lined improvisations
offer fascinating development of ideas, and she has a marvelous way of
floating above the time without losing her connection with the ground
beat.
--Thomas Cunniffe, Jazz History Online
It's not only Davis's soulfully fluent playing that resonates, but also her tightly knit quartet.
--Mark F. Turner, AllAboutJazz
Music that's overtly warm, yet oddball at heart. Recommended.
--Dave Sumner, eMusic
One of the city's strongest and most exciting jazz saxophonists.
--Peter Margasak, Chicago Reader
Thrilling and thoroughly enjoyable, Live Work & Play whets the appetite for more from this unique composer and improviser.
--Hrayr Attarian, Jazziz
Photography: Kelly Fleming
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