Antonio Adolfo
‘Samba Jazz
Alley’
AAM Music
In the liner notes
of his new album, pianist-composer Antonio Adolfo introduces us to an alley in
Rio de Janeiro’s Copacabana district that enchanted him in his teenage years.
This “cauldron of jazz” led him to his life’s work — playing with singers like
Flora Purim and Milton Nascimento, and writing songs
for Stevie Wonder, Dionne Warwick, and others. Because Adolfo seeks to
transport listeners back to the 1960’s world of “Samba Jazz Alley,” it’s
appropriate that most of the tunes are covers.
But even on the most
familiar tunes, Adolfo’s arrangements steal the show. Jazz fans who have heard
Antonio Carlos Jobim’s “Corcovado” countless times
will find Adolfo’s treatment fresh. He peels back the song’s layers slowly,
with piano, flugelhorn and flute until, finally, the full band comes in with
rich harmony. While there are too many fine musicians to mention, Jesse Sadoc is especially strong on trumpet and flugelhorn and
Marcelo Martins is excellent on saxophones and alto flute.
This article appears in Aug 28 – Sep 3, 2019.
