The 2010 self-titled release by the
Stanley Clarke Band is aptly titled; it actually feels more like a band record than anything he's done in decades. This isn't saying that
Clarke's solo work is somehow less than, but when he surrounds himself with musicians that are all prodigies in their own right, the end results tend to be more satisfying. Produced by
Clarke and
Lenny White, his band is made up Compton double-kick drum maestro
Ronald Bruner, Jr., Israeli pianist/keyboardist
Ruslan Sirota, and pianist
Hiromi Uehara (aka
Hiromi) who plays selectively but is considered a member. There are guests, too, including a horn section, a couple of guitarists in
Rob Bacon and
Charles Altura, and saxophonist
Bob Sheppard.
Clarke plays his usual arsenal of basses.
Sirota and
Hiromi also contribute compositions to the album. They include the former's set opener
"Soldier." While its intro is quiet and melodic enough, it evolves, first into a modal study with
Clarke playing the melody before it kicks into jazz-rock overdrive with
Altura playing a distorted rhythm guitar to
Clarke's Alembic tenor bass. Dynamics shift and turn; they make the track a multi-faceted investigation with
Sirota's piano solo sourcing both
McCoy Tyner and
Herbie Hancock.
Hiromi's
"Labyrinth" melds elements of
"My Favorite Things" to modern post-bop and classical architectures; the breakbeats by
Bruner add a funky touch, and
Clarke's layered basses become a focal foil for the piano. There is also an updated reading of
Chick Corea's
"No Mystery," from
Clarke's days with
Return to Forever, that captures the tune's near transcendent curiosity without trying to re-create it. The drama brought by
Clarke's bass is tense and declamatory.
"Sonny Rollins" contains the theme from
"Don't Stop the Carnival" and is Caribbean-flavored, but pays tribute to the saxophonist's entire career. Written by
Clarke, it contains wonderfully knotty passages on acoustic as well as electric basses;
Sheppard's fine soloing and fills make it a jumper.
"I Wanna Play for You Too" is funkily self-explanatory for
Clarke fans, while
"Bass Folk Song #10" is a gorgeous solo piece.
"Fulani" is an excellent piece of contemporary fusion, where
"Larry Has Traveled 11 Miles and Waited a Lifetime for the Return of Vishnu's Report," dedicated to
Joe Zawinul, is a clumsy, failed attempt at summing up the music's history to date. The ballads, including
"Bass Folk Song No. 6," which closes the set, work less well, but these are minor complaints on an otherwise fine recording. ~ Thom Jurek
