Romare Bearden Revealed

1	I'm Slappin' Seventh Avenue (With the Sole of My Shoe) 2:03
2	Jungle Blues 8:51
3	Seabreeze 6:13
4	J Mood 10:49
5	B's Paris Blues 4:30
6	Autumn Lamp 2:54
7	Steppin' on the Blues 4:55
8	Laughin' & Talkin' (With Higg) 10:43
9	Carolina Shout 2:36

Barnes & Noble

On his first release for Marsalis Music, his signature label, Branford Marsalis deployed his quartet to present an homage to the legacy of jazz modernism, with extended investigations of John Coltrane's "Love Supreme" and Sonny Rollins's "Freedom Suite," as well as pithy romps through Ornette Coleman's "Giggin' " and John Lewis's "Concorde." With the relaxed follow-up, Romare Bearden Revealed, Marsalis tips his hat to the Harlem Renaissance with blues-drenched sonic analogs to nine paintings by the seminal midcentury African-American artist, and in so doing, broadens his scope in interesting ways. Marsalis explicitly refers to Bearden’s collagist techniques in the way he juxtaposes different ensembles and configurations for dynamic contrast. Trumpeter Wynton Marsalis joins the mix on his own "J Mood," a Milesian blues from the '80s; on drummer Jeff Watts's "Laughin' and Talkin' [With Higg]," a smoking free-form blues in the manner of the Sonny Rollins–Don Cherry quartet of the early '60s; and on a detailed arrangement of Jelly Roll Morton's "Jungle Blues," performed by the remaining Marsalis family musicians (Jason, drums; Delfeayo, trombone; and Ellis, the family patriarch, on piano). Guitarist Doug Wamble, a Marsalis Music artist, augments the quintet on Duke Ellington's "Slappin' Seventh Avenue" and a Sidney Bechet–inflected Branford original entitled "B's Paris Blues," and takes an unaccompanied solo on his own original “Autumn Lamp.” Marsalis conjures Bechet’s ghost on James P. Johnson’s “Carolina Shout" in a romping soprano-piano duo with Harry Connick Jr., a longtime family friend who released an instrumental quartet session on the label earlier this year. The quartet is alternately mellow (Bearden’s “Seabreeze”) and intense (“Steppin’ on the Blues”), and the eldest Marsalis brother is in fine form, playing both the tenor and soprano with rounded tone and melodic inspiration. A fine recording, with depth and substance. Ted Panken

All Music Guide

Conceptualized around the visionary paintings of Harlem-born artist Romare Bearden (1911-1988), saxophonist Branford Marsalis' Romare Bearden Revealed celebrates the obvious as well as the less tangible connections between the jazz Bearden loved and the artwork it inspired. Reflectively performing some of the songs Bearden co-opted as titles for paintings, Marsalis also includes original compositions inspired by the bluesy, organic quality inherent in Bearden's art. Featuring his working quartet of pianist Joey Calderazzo, bassist Eric Revis, and drummer Jeff "Tain" Watts, the album also includes appearances by the whole Marsalis family. Brother Wynton Marsalis revisits his post-bop "J Mood" from his 1985 album of the same name, which featured cover art by Bearden. The trumpeter also keeps things bawdy with some brilliant plunger work on a live recording of Jelly Roll Morton's "Jungle Blues." Similarly, "B's Paris Blues" finds Branford turning his trademark soprano sax to the 1961 Bearden work Paris Blues, celebrating the beauty and ennui of American black musicians who expatriated to France for artistic and social freedom. Even Harry Connick, Jr. drops by for a lithe and soulful stride duet on James P. Johnson's "Carolina Shout." Perhaps most compelling, though, is guitarist Doug Wamble's solo turn on "Autumn Lamp." Inspired by Beardens' 1981 rural vision of a blues guitarist playing by himself under the glow of candle lamp, Wamble utilizes a resonator guitar with a slide, calling to mind Mississippi Fred McDowell's version of "Keep Your Lamp Trimmed and Burning" (perhaps Bearden's inspiration as well?). From one great artist to another, this is an earthy and accessible homage. Matt Collar

All About Jazz

Branford and his quartet are in their usual tight form with impeccable, authentic performances that bring Bearden’s art to sound.