It seems that JHR are currently the sole source of Tim Armacost's new album (vinyl and download only) The Inevitable Note. We have copies of the first pressing of 250 180gm copies- a second pressing is due with a slightly different cover. It features long-time associates Jim Ridl, Kenny Davis & Rudy Royston, with Joe Locke added on vibes, and comprises one standard- Lazy Afternoon- taken at quite a lick- plus 4 Armacost originals and one by the Argentinian pianist/composer Adrian Iaies.
Tim has been recording since 1995, leading bands including Tom Harrell, Kenny Barron & Billy Hart. He's toured the UK with the New York Standards Quartet (David Berkman on piano) and has also appeared here (a storming set at the Southport Jazz Festival) and recorded with Alex Garnett.
Tim reckons The Inevitable Note his best yet; I've listened to a lot of his recordings since the NYSQ tour and have heard him live - including a set at Smalls with Wynton Marsalis sitting in for one number- whenever I could , and I don't disagree.
“Armacost entered the limelight in 1995 with his Concord Records debut, “Fire,” with pianist Kenny Barron and drummer Billy Hart, who also played on Armacost’s last two discs. Most saxophonists, following the model of John Coltrane, run up and down scales and arpeggios, carefully following the vertical patterns of a song’s harmony, the more challenging the better.
Armacost, by contrast, is more melodic, linear and unpredictable, much in the tradition of Joe Henderson and Stan Getz. With a big, soulful sound on tenor and a warm tone on soprano, the 40-year-old sax man plays gently away from the chords – what musicians call “outside” the harmony – but without ever sounding harsh or mechanical. Rhythmically, his playing is loose and fluid, as well. Mixing odd and even groupings of notes – without ever losing the feeling of swing – Armacost makes unexpected twists and turns, landing in unusual places.”
Paul De Barros
The Seattle Times
