Chris Potter – Alive With Ghosts Today

Since signing with the British label Edition Records, Chris Potter has been releasing—as I’ve mentioned before—one album a year, featuring lineups as diverse as a CD where he plays all the instruments or two live quartets with outstanding musicians (reviewed here a few years ago).

What’s new this time is that he has formed an atypical septet featuring clarinet, trombone, and violin, and that the guitar is played by one of the stars of the six-string: none other than Bill Frisell.

Suffice it to say that the arrangements are one of the highlights of this recording and that the main solo voice, aside from the leader, is obviously that of the guitarist with his inimitable sound. A unique group sound, then, and one crafted with particular attention to the richness of the timbres and the interweaving of their melodic lines. Potter is one of the great saxophonists (tenor above all) in the global jazz scene. His penchant for “athletic” feats on the instrument is mostly impressive but always relevant, as he possesses the art of telling a story through his solos.

Here, he weaves his sumptuous tone and adventurous phrasing into the fabric of the arrangements, where his artistry works wonders, and he never steals the spotlight. The other standout performer is, of course, Bill Frisell, who never fails to delight with his unique way of shaping sound and the inventiveness of his solo performances.

One might even say that the guitarist’s laid-back style tends to steer the saxophonist’s playing toward a restraint that is unusual for him.

But beyond these two principal soloists, it is the ensemble of timbres brought together here that is truly fascinating. The rare appearances of the violin are remarkable in every respect and lend the ensemble a welcome extra touch of lyricism.

While the trombone and clarinet rarely take the lead, they lend the ensemble a particularly distinctive color, and one never tires of hearing the interweaving of these diverse sounds brought together in arrangements that are both meticulously crafted and resonate with majestic clarity, supported by a first-rate rhythm section. This is yet another milestone in the discography of a prolific musician who never ceases to reinvent himself and surprise us with his ability to offer fresh approaches that make him, more than just a sax hero, a major artist on the international jazz scene.