Eri Yamamoto Finds the Good Everyday

Patrons weaving their way around us at Arthur’s Tavern would hardly be surprised to hear Eri Yamamoto and her trio discussing music. The occasional Italian might have thrown them. Following her Sunday night “Thank You 2009” performance at Cornelia Street Café (a two year tradition for hip New Yorkers ringing out the old), I was able to catch the busy pianist-composer after her usual Saturday night set at Arthur’s Tavern to discuss her new CD, In Each Day, Something Good, which releases today. Her longtime drummer Ikuo Takeuchi and frequent bassist Arthur Kell sat-in to provide their typical rock-solid support (or perhaps to mock my skills as interviewer) and also add a few words of their own (usually in English for my benefit).

On and off the bandstand, the rapport between Yamamoto and the regular members of her trio is immediately evident. She and Takeuchi have been playing together for fourteen years and the much in-demand bassist Dave Ambrosio has been recording and touring with Yamamoto’s trio for the last five years (Kevin Tkacz completes the battery of bassists that regularly join her at Arthur’s three nights a week, when she is not touring). “We don’t have to say anything,” Yamamoto said, describing her relationship with Takeuchi and Ambrosio. “It is like we share the same musical mind.”

As a result, Yamamoto’s trio has an instantly recognizable sound all their own, yet certainly reflective of her own aesthetic sensibilities. As she explains: “In music or any art-form, I prefer work that uses space—things that are not 100% complete, but have something identifiably missing. That makes them more interesting.”

In their time together, Yamamoto’s trio has toured extensively, racking up many war stories on the road. One telling anecdote occurred when Yamamoto returned to her native Japan. As she recalled: “To make our next gig, we had to transfer from the bullet train to a local train that only left every two hours. The problem was the platforms were very far apart and Ikuo was loaded down with his drums. I ran ahead to ask the conductor to hold the train for us, but instead he came out and carried Ikuo’s drum cases by himself. We could still hear he was short of breath when he announced the next two station stops.”

No matter how friendly Japanese train conductors might generally be, I cannot imagine anyone but Eri Yamamoto convincing one to disregard his timetables in order to lug a bunch of drums on-board. She has that ability to win people over wherever she goes, including the often rambunctious crowd at Arthur’s. In particular, she seems to have forged a special relationship with Italian audiences, which is why she has been learning Italian (evidently Takeuchi has picked up a fair amount as well).

“In the last three years, I went to Italy over ten times, she explained. “I’ve been seriously studying the language for the last two months because I want to be able to show my appreciation. Often people will come not necessarily knowing who we are, yet they come anyway. That means a lot, so it is nice to be able to thank them in their language.”

In fact, many of the compositions on In Each Day were inspired by her frequent travels, like “Sheep Song,” the product of a tour through Wales, and “Blue in Tunisia,” whose origin is self-explanatory. However, the new CD includes something new for her, a suite of compositions constituting an original soundtrack to the classic 1932Yasujiro Ozu silent film, I Was Born, But… According to Yamamoto, it started with a casual observation:

“A friend of mine happened to mention that some of my music reminded him of a movie soundtrack and suggested I compose my own. I didn’t want to write something for a film that already had a score, so I started considering silent movies . . . When I thought of Ozu’s I Was Born, it seemed perfect. I liked the fact that it was Japanese and the story appealed to me. I don’t really like special effect movies. I prefer films about ordinary people.” Indeed, Ozu’s blend of slapstick comedy and shrewd social commentary would be perfectly complimented by Yamamoto’s music, which is both playful and contemplative in equal measure. (And just for the record, her favorite film is Cinema Paradiso—another Italian connection.)

In Each Day also marks a milestone: her fifteenth year performing in New York. “Of course,” she readily conceded, “being a musician here can be challenging, but you have to remember to look for the good in every day.” Like her previous trio CD, it was released on the Brooklyn-based Aum Fidelity label and features a cover painting by her nephew, Leo Yamamoto (“I still owe him a trip to the Japanese barbeque,” she confessed.).

While she would like to tour less this year in order to “focus, think, and write,” Yamamoto still has plenty of international gigs already booked, including an unusual trio concert in Montreal with fellow pianist Yves Léveillé and oboe player Paul McCandless on March 4th. A duo CD with Léveillé is also forthcoming sometime in the future.

In Each Day is another fresh and intriguing musical statement from one of the busiest and most original jazz composers and improvisers on the scene today. As always, you can always hear the compositions that will eventually comprise her next CD as she hones them in live performance at Arthur’s every Thursday, Friday, and Saturday nights—at least when she is in town. To check her busy schedule or for more information about her CDs go to Yamamoto’s website at: http://www.eriyamamoto.com/.

(CD Cover art: Leo Yamamoto
Eri Yamoto photo: Rita Cigolini
Trio photo: Agnieszka Kubeczko)

Bass in BKLN

I actually made it out to Brooklyn last night, and no, I’m not waiting for applause. It was well worth making the trek to hear bassist Kevin Tkacz’s gig at Barbès. His first CD, It’s Not What You Think, is in various stages of pre-release, but having already heard it, I heartily recommend it.

I have heard Tkacz (pronounced tax, but skip the annoying I.R.S. related puns) play with Eri Yamamoto’s trio at Arthur’s Tavern. It’s a good example of the peculiar jazz way in which awareness of one cool musician often leads to another. Both on his upcoming CD and at Barbès, Tkacz’s intriguing music defies easy classification. While there is definitely an exploratory, free dimension, it is not at all abrasive. Rather than screaming at listeners, it sort of sidles up to you to say something clever.

The leader was joined by drummer Michael Sarin (also heard on What You Think), Angelica Sanchez on piano, and trumpeter Shane Endsley. Having played before, their easy-going camaraderie was audible, despite the steamy hot environment of the room. Let’s just say they worked hard for it last night (the ice in my drink actually melted). Tkacz’s compositions can be moody and dramatic, but also reflect his sense of humor. A great example last night was the soothingly melodic “Ambien(t) Lullaby.”

If you live in Fargo hearing quality live jazz could be problematic. However, if you live in the City and you’re not supporting live music, you have to get out more. There are great musicians playing every night at affordable venues like Barbès. You obviously have internet access, so have no excuse. Just go to the websites of clubs like Barbès, Arthurs, 55 Bar, and Cleopatra’s Needle, and then check out their scheduled musicians on myspace (90% of them will be there). When you hear one like, go see them, it’s as simple as that.

You could start by hearing Tkacz at Arthur’s over the next three nights, and if you are really polite, you’ll probably be able to buy an early copy of What You Think. (More details will go up here when it is on the market proper.) It’s a great CD and hopefully the start of a long discography as a leader.

The Wetlands Preserve Preserved

There was an interesting time in the 1990’s when elements of rock and jazz were reaching towards each other through the jam band movement. Rock bands like Phish and Widespread Panic, inspired by forerunners like the Grateful Dead and the Allman Brothers, were exploring similar musical territory as were jazz jammers like MMW and Soulive. More than any other venue, the Wetlands Preserve incubated the rock side of the jam band scene and celebrated its hippy roots. The life and times of the club are chronicled in Dean Budnick’s entertaining new documentary Wetlands Preserved (trailer here), opening in New York this Friday.

The Wetlands Preserve was the unlikely brainchild of sixties holdout Larry Bloch. He had no prior nightclub experience, but envisioned a unique venue in which the club would support a center for political activism as a given cost of doing business. During the Tribeca club’s life, from 1989 to its closing soon after September 11th, the Wetlands booked a number of acts poised to explode, including Blues Traveler, Dave Matthews Band, Phish, Spin Doctors, and Hootie and the Blowfish. To his regret, Bloch never did book the Dead—the band that inspired his club—but Robert Hunter played their final night, which was almost close enough.

There is some great music to be heard in Preserved, thanks to live performances recorded in the club from artists including Matthews, Blues Traveler, Robert Randolph, and Ben Harper. Together with some animation appropriate to the club’s spirit, it is definitely the reason to see the documentary.

However, the behind the scenes stories of Wetlands are also surprisingly entertaining—some even laugh out loud funny. We learn that Bloch’s green sensibilities insisted the club only use paper straws, not plastic, which according to his ex-wife worked about as well as you would expect. Many of the employees have great anecdotes too, like a bar worker who started on the night an uncharacteristically hardcore band played. (The story depends on his expressions and it is a tad scatological, so let’s save it for the film.)

(As for the politics of Wetlands, they tended to be a juvenile mix of environmental and anti-corporate street theater. Frankly, the coordinator of their activism center comes across as a terrible on-camera spokesman, so it is easy to tune out his clichéd rhetoric.)

The music is indeed what the club did best, and it is the best part of Budnick’s film. In addition to improvised rock, Wetlands also booked ska, hip-hop, hardcore, and jam-based jazz. For instance, jazz artists like Charlie Hunter and Soulive played the club. Although these artists are not represented on Preserved’s soundtrack, Jazz listeners will find much of interest in the film, including interviews with John Medeski, Soulive’s Eric Krasno, and briefly Branford Marsalis (who should know something about hippy music having toured with the Dead).

Bloch deserves a lot of credit for creating a great venue and dealing with the City’s red tape and regulations (one amusing sequence pokes fun at the club’s “legal” maximum occupancy). Budnick’s documentary collects some cool grooves and real laughs in a film that should appeal to those of us who went to school during the Wetlands years and associate vivid memories with that music. It opens in New York this Friday at the Cinema Village.

New York Jazz, Sans Cover

Great jazz without a cover charge—what a concept. You will not find it in the major clubs, but many other venues in New York really do feature jazz artists with national reputations, on regular nights, without cover charges. Of course, they will still expect you to order a drink.

Let’s start with my good neighbor, guitarist Larry Corban. Every Tuesday night from 9:00-12:00, you can hear him as part of a great jazz guitar trio with Mike Heady on drums and Mike Noordzy on bass at Whiskey Town (29 E. 3rd St.). These guys obviously enjoy playing together. Their sets are relaxed and swinging, making this a great late evening hang. The people at Whiskey Town are friendly, the drinks are reasonable, and I have never had a problem finding a seat at the bar. Again, no cover.

When Eri Yamamoto is not literally touring the world, you can hear her every Thursday, Friday, and Saturday from 7:00-10:00 at Arthur’s Tavern (57 Grove Street). Arthur’s is not exactly a well kept secret. You might have to fight for a seat around the piano, but it is the effort, because Eri Yamamoto is a great musician and a prolific composer. You could hear a world premiere any given night. Most nights the crowd is split, with half listening raptly, and those in front yammering away (but remember—no music charge).

If you find yourself on the Upper Westside and want some steak with your music, check out Roth’s Steakhouse (680 Columbus Avenue). Every Thursday night starting at 8:30, a very funky jazz group including guitarist Bernard Grobman and drummer Cindy Blackman (who has played with just about everyone, including Jackie McLean and Lenny Kravitz) hold court. When I was there two weeks ago, there was a real Cannonball kind of thing going on. By New York standards, the hanger steak is pretty reasonable too.

You can still find venues in New York featuring world class jazz artists without a cover, but they often do not get the word out as well as they should. I have been to these three within the last few months, and have always enjoyed these regular featured performers. When in New York, consider patronizing them, but remember these are no cover gigs, so if a tip-jar comes around, do the right thing.