John Taylor

John Taylor – Angel Of The Presence (Deluxe Edition) (2021)
FLAC (tracks) 24 bit/96 kHz | Time – 52:24 minutes | 958 MB | Genre: Contemporary Jazz, Jazz
Studio Masters, Official Digital Download | Front Cover | © Cam Jazz

John Taylor has several strings to his bow: he can play with a certain nonchalance or feverishly throw his notes in a hurry. The introspective pianist of “Insight” or “Rosslyn” – to quote recent records – is more talkative than usual. Vaguely Asian, a composition by Steve Swallow previously recorded by Taylor as a solo, loses some of its abstraction. The drums of Martin France order, channel, bring another light to the piece, a powerful and energetic drummer pushing the pianist into action. With Palle Danielsson to complete it, the rhythm section makes an act of presence. A round and attentive double bass, a sonorous and imposing drums put themselves at the service of the piano, answer and develop its sentences, ready at any time for dialogue, for exchange. The pianist can thus sing louder or indulge in a sensitive and delicate chatter, this somewhat ethereal aspect of his music found in Dry Stone, Fable and Intro to No Particular Song by Kenny Wheeler, three ballads from a recommended album.
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John Taylor Trio – Decipher (1973/2015)
FLAC (tracks) 24-bit/88,2 kHz | Time – 36:24 minutes | 683 MB | Genre: Jazz
Studio Master, Official Digital Download – Source: HighResAudio | Front cover | © MPS
Recorded: 1972–1973 at MPS Studio, Villingen

“…one of contemporary jazz’s great performers…” so reads the prestigious Guardian newspaper’s assessment of English pianist John Taylor. As house pianist at London’s legendary Ronny Scott’s jazz club, Taylor accompanied many of the icons of jazz, and in so doing honed his individual style into what became one of the most important voices on the European jazz scene. The gigs and recordings of his own groups, his long-time association with trumpeter Kenny Wheeler, his many ECM trio recordings with Peter Erskine and Palle Danielsonn and groups lead by the likes of Jan Garbarek and John Surman established Taylor’s importance. Taylor’s 1973 MPS trio album Decipher features two top players, bassist Chris Laurence and drummer Tony Levin, who perfectly compliment Taylor’s wide-ranging style on an album that offers the listener a delicious taste of his compositions. The virtuoso sprint of Cipher melds into the varying tempos and emotions of Wait For Me, whereas Leaping is a pointillist abstract exchange between the three. The emotive jazz waltz Speak to Me plays some magical slight-of-hand with the time, and Song For a Child sings out as a soft-spoken ballad. White Magic powers through as a hard-swinging elixir for all that ails. Taylor’s second album as leader presents a master composer/player at full maturity – what a joy that this music is available once again.

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