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The Doors' John Densmore always said he was a jazz drummer, and after a brief side trip that lasted three decades(!) he proves it on the debut of Tribal Jazz, a band he created with sax/flute player Art Ellis. The duo put together an international ensemble with players from all over the world—all ethnicities and many cultures, men and women, including master African drummers Marcel Adjibi and Aziz Fay.
Let's get one thing out of the way: this is not a jazz-rock, fusion or smooth jazz. Tribal Jazz plays straight ahead, old-school post-bop with Afro-Cuban, Brazilian and Latin influences. You can call it "world jazz" without being far off the mark. The music covers a broad range of styles, with nods to the past, present and evolving future of the music, but it never sounds forced or thrown together.
"The First Time (I Heard Coltrane)," based on a poem Ellis wrote about the effect John Coltrane had on his musical development, has a slightly '50s feel. Actress Alfre Woodard recites the poem and makes the powerful words dance as Ellis unspools a complex, soprano sax solo that references 'Trane's middle period. Densmore's cymbal accents and Adjibi's talking drum add a jittery excitement to Woodard's words. "Orange Midnight" rides a transoceanic grove supplied by Densmore's Brazilian traps and Aziz Fay's North African percussion. Ellis solos in the upper registers while Quinn Johnson's piano sprinkles Latin arpeggios anchored by heavy, left hand tribal rhythms.
"Skytrails" has hints of West Africa, Cuba and Brazil in its multilayered percussion arrangement; Ellis provides a soaring solo full of light and space that lives up to the tune's title. "La Tormenta" is based on the melody of "Riders On The Storm," a laid back Cuban groove that's part guajira, part charanga. Ellis contributes some delirious country style flute before a descarga that features an intricate conversation between Densmore's drums, and Miguel Rivera's congas. ("Riders" also gets a smooth, piano bar style reading later in the program.) "Violet Love," a piece inspired by 9/ll, includes a rap by Spearhead's Michael Franti. It has a funky, hip-hop groove, but its inspired message of peace, universal brotherhood and cooperation makes no concessions to commercial music.
This is clearly a band that loves playing together and Densmore resists any temptation to make it a vehicle for his considerable chops. The band's supple grooves and sharp ensemble playing make the music a joy, a much-needed shot of spiritual and intercultural harmony that offers a temporary antidote to the troubled times we live in.
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