In a career now entering its sixth decade, pianist Herbie Hancock has covered more ground than most. He was a key member of trumpet icon Miles Davis' heralded quintet of the 1960s, with saxophonist Wayne Shorter, bassist Ron Carter and drummer Tony Williams. He was a key part of the nascent fusion community in the late 1960s/early 1970s, performing on Davis' seminal In a Silent Way (Columbia, 1969) and his own funkified classic, Head Hunters (Columbia, 1973). He went on to perform vital acoustic jazz with his V.S.O.P. quintet and score a huge radio hit with the techno-driven “Rockit,” from the groundbreaking Future Shock (Columbia, 1983). More recently, he's taken a strong look at contemporary pop music on The New Standard (Verve, 1995), tackled recent technology on Future2Future (Transparent, 2001) and won a Grammy for his stellar reimagining of the music of songstress Joni Mitchell on River: The Joni Letters (Verve, 2007).
Hancock's latest release, The Imagine Project (Herbie Hancock Music, 2010), expands on his successful pop record, Possibilities (Hear Music, 2005) but this time collecting a similarly broad range of friends old and new - including guitarists Jeff Beck,Lionel Loueke and Derek Trucks, saxophonist Wayne Shorter, bassist Marcus Miller, and singers Susan Tedeschi, Seal, Pink, Chaka Khan and Dave Matthews - and recording a set of covers around the world and in collaboration with other musicians from across the globe in a project that is all about optimism and a plea for global oneness.
AAJ Contributor Esther Berlenga-Ryan spoke with Hancock about the genesis of the project, working with producer Larry Klein, and the challenges of realizing a truly global affair. Read Esther's in-depth interview, Herbie Hancock: One World, One Music at AAJ today!
You can also read AAJ Managing Editor John Kelman's insightful CD Review of The Imagine Project, also published today at AAJ.
Last, watch Hancock recording “Space Captain,” an incendiary track from The Imagine Project, featuring slide guitarist Derek Trucks and singer Susan Tedeschi, today's AAJ Daily Video.
AAJ is committed to bringing you the most extensive coverage anywhere, so check out all the buzz surrounding Herbie Hancock and The Imagine Project at AAJ today!
No comments:
Post a Comment