George Cables

George Cables – Too Close for Comfort (2021)
FLAC (tracks) 24 bit/96 kHz | Time – 55:48 minutes | 1,11 GB | Genre: Jazz
Studio Masters, Official Digital Download | Front Cover | © HighNote Records

On his sixth HighNote album, pianist George Cables displays the immense harmonic warmth and swinging precision that one would expect from a journeyman master with an over-40-year-long career. Having famously honed his skills alongside such legendary players as Dexter Gordon, Joe Henderson, and Freddie Hubbard, Cables (who Art Pepper dubbed “Mr. Beautiful” due to how much he loved his playing) has been leading his own groups on and off since the ’70s. Beginning in the 2010s, he formed a lasting trio with bassist Essiet Essiet and drummer Victor Lewis, both equally seasoned veterans. Together, they play an urbane and highly engaging brand of jazz that is the epitome of acoustic post-bop. It’s a sound steeped in the modern jazz tradition, but one which continually seeks for greater harmonic and lyrical clarity. Cables leads his bandmates with deftness and grace, contrasting his thick block chords with tumbling multi-note runs. It’s a virtuosic style that’s particularly evident on standards, including their galloping reading of the 1956 title track and their brisk take on the Guys and Dolls classic “I’ve Never Been in Love Before.” However, it’s on his original compositions, including the glistening Latin number “This Is My Song” and the Dave Brubeck-esque 3/4 piece “Circle of Love” that Cables and his trio truly shine. This isn’t music that pushes boundaries, or challenges your ears with harsh dissonance — that’s not the point. With his trio, Cables has more nuanced and subtle goals in mind. Too Close for Comfort is an album that sparkles with deep creativity and intelligence, reminding you how engaging and beautiful acoustic jazz can be. – Matt Collar

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George Cables – The George Cables Songbook (2016)
FLAC (tracks) 24 bit/88,2 kHz | Time – 01:12:51 minutes | 1,32 GB | Genre: Jazz
Studio Masters, Official Digital Download | Front Cover | © HighNote Records

In the 1970s and ’80s, George Cables was the pianist of choice for saxophonists Dexter Gordon and Art Pepper and he also recorded a lot with jazz stars Joe Henderson, Freddie Hubbard, Bobby Hutcherson and Frank Morgan. On Cables’ own new album, it’s all personal. He’s a terrific pianist, but his new album illuminates his gifts as a composer as much as his skill at the keyboard. Cables’ student and outstanding vocalist in her own right, Sarah Elizabeth Charles has written lyrics for a number of Cables’ instrumental numbers and she appears on the album to deliver them with a real sense of swing, style and sensitivity. Reedman Craig Handy is also featured as is percussionist Steve Kroon, adding some extra subtle color to the proceedings. But the dominant leitmotif throughout it all is Cables and his piano playing which, with all its ease of execution and non-flashy excellence, is always present to give good taste a good name.

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George Cables – In Good Company (2015)
FLAC (tracks) 24 bit/44,1 kHz | Time – 01:01:42 minutes | 672 MB | Genre: Jazz
Studio Masters, Official Digital Download | Front Cover | © HighNote Records

When the classical composer Paul Dukas wrote, “In every beautiful work, it is the man the work expresses that counts first and foremost,” he could not have known he was describing the art of George Cables. One of the world’s greatest jazz pianists – one who helped define the sound of the instrument as we know it today – Cables has been making unostentatious music at the keyboard for decades. In Good Company, though focusing on people Cables knew in the past is not a tribute album, but rather a series of personal reminiscences from the keyboard. It looks back in time for its inspiration, but not in its musical vocabulary for George Cables’ playing remains as fresh and as surprising as the front page of tomorrow’s newspaper. On display in every track are those wonderful turns of phrases, interesting voicings and that gorgeous tone which characterizes Cables’ playing. With musical compadres Essiet Essiet and Victor Lewis, Cables explores the music of Duke Ellington, Billy Strayhorn, John Hicks and offers a couple of his own intensely interesting compositions.

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George Cables – I’m All Smiles (2019)
FLAC (tracks) 24 bit/96 kHz | Time – 58:22 minutes | 1,10 GB | Genre: Jazz
Studio Masters, Official Digital Download | Front Cover | © HighNote Records

Trio album from George Cables, who has been the pianist of choice for saxophonists Dexter Gordon and Art Pepper; Pepper called him his favourite pianist. Cables also recorded a lot with jazz stars Joe Henderson, Freddie Hubbard, Bobby Hutcherson and Frank Morgan.

On ‘I’m All Smiles’, he is so fluent in the ways of the keyboard, song structure and harmony, so aware of his available options at every second, the compositions themselves seem as if they are being made up on the spot.

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