80 - Live at Jazzcup

What is jazz? A silly question, perhaps, but nonetheless relevant when one crosses paths with music that wraps itself around you in an immediate embrace - and which is unmistakably jazz. In ist purest, most elementary form, jazz music involves musicians playing a melody and then improvising over the song’s form in the spirit of said melody. Based on that description, one might assume that jazz could easily become a tedious, tired, and even torturous affair for listeners. But one would be wrong – and certainly when Jesper Thilo is playing. The recently crowned octogenarian hasn’t let his new decade of experience allow him to skip so much as a beat, and is still going, as strong as ever. A steady presence on the Danish jazz scene ever since his arrival in the early 1960s, Thilo’s playing was often compared to Ben Webster and Coleman Hawkins in his early days. In the decades since, his sound and musical language have expanded, becoming increasingly personal. In addition to leading his own groups, he’s worked with an astounding number of jazz legends in various contexts throughout his storied career - far too many to list here - but including the aforementioned Webster and Hawkins, as well as Hank Jones, Harry "Sweets" Edison, Charlie Shavers, Coleman Hawkins, Johnny Griffin, Buck Clayton, Roy Eldridge… the list goes on and on! The music here (released in association with The Ben Webster Foundation) is a testament to Thilo’s influence and importance - a deservedly celebrated legend in the Danish jazz milieu. The Foundation and the tenor titan have a long history together, dating back to 1977 when none other than Jesper Thilo became the first-ever recipient of the Ben Webster Prize. The music heard here is recorded live at Jazzcup - Thilo’s “home base” and a one-of-ist-kind Copenhagen institution that combines an old-fashioned record store with a performance venue. Jazz fans from all over the world visit the Danish capital to take in the unique atmosphere in the room which radiates the original American art form. Jazz legends from throughout the genre’s history have graced the humble stage, and the seating area can transform from a quaint coffee hang-out-spot to a raucous elbow-room-only creative altar at the drop of a hat. It’s not surprising that Thilo and many others feel so at home there. You don't have to listen to this album for long before it’s clear that something very special is happening that day at Jazzcup. Listeners are taken on flights of fancy through the heavens, all while enjoying firm and familiar ground underfoot. Yes, it's undeniably jazz, and definitely in the aforementioned purest incarnation, but never tired and anything but tedious! The outstanding pianist Søren Kristiansen, who has developed an elegant and impetuous voice on his instrument (clearly inspired by masters such as Oscar Peterson but wholly his own creative entity), is no stranger to backing up Thilo, as he’s been a permanent fixture in the saxophonist's quartet for years. The group is filled out with a bass and drum dream team in the form of bassist Daniel Franck and drummer Frands Rifbjerg, who provide an inspiring and solid foundation of support and momentum. And then, just when you think you’ve got a handle on Jesper Thilo, he reminds us that he’s not just a saxophone colossus. Originally trained as a clarinetist, he can still hold his own with the best of the best on the instrument. With an airy, lyrical, and woody sound, he expertly embellishes and meticulously gilds melodic motifs. But in the end, Thilo’s tenor playing truly steals the show, with his ability to surprise even the most well-trained and well-traveled ears in the audience - even in the well-known and well-loved repertoire like he treats us to, here. And, finally, the album ends with an actual musical bang(!) - fitting for what turns out to be the first live recording the now 80-year-old guru has released with his own group. The quartet touches Lester Young’s classic Lester Leaps In and, via a chorus of Charlie Parker’s Anthropology, sticks a perfect landing onto the Oscar Pettiford classic Montmartre Blues. So… what is jazz? Just listen to Jesper Thilo!