Jeremy Monteiro - Live at No Black Tie

Jeremy Monteiro - Live at No Black Tie - Jazz Note Records

One of Singapore's premiere jazz artists, pianist Jeremy Monteiro's career has him playing and recording with such jazz giants and legends as James Moody Benny Golson, Michael Brecker, Herbie Mann, Ernie Watts, Charlie Haden, Carmen Bradford, and many more. In the eighties, he formed a partnership with Eldee Young and Redd Holt, who had been part of the Ramsey Lewis Trip before starting Young-Holt Unlimited. In 1986, Claude Nobs, who produced the Montreux Jazz Festival, was in Singapore and heard a recording by the trio. He called Monteiro and invited him to play the main stage in Montreux, provided he also brought Young and Holt. The trio played, and a live recording was issued of the performance. Thirty-five years later, the pianist was joined by another stellar duo, bassist Jay Anderson and drummer Lewis Nash for a live recording at No Black Tie in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

Monteiro's influences include Oscar Peterson, Erroll Garner, Chick Corea, and Keith Jarrett. From the introductory notes of Dave Brubeck's "In Your Own Sweet Way" to the closing notes of Herbie Hancock's "Watermelon Man," he impresses with splendid technique, touch, timing, and dynamics. He can astonish one minute and then engender a sense of calm. One bravado performance is "Just in Time," where his solos build in volcanic intensity before Nash takes a solo that dances around the performance's rhythms. Bassist Anderson is equally compelling here. Then there is a delightful interpretation of Duke Ellington's "Prelude to a Kiss," where he delicately states the melody and an understated solo leads into bassist Anderson's masterful, imaginative solo. 

Other tracks include the easy swinging original that is a tribute to James Moody, "Mode For Love," with the fluidity and precision of Monteiro's playing standing out with the sublime support he receives. It is followed by a gorgeous melodic ballad, "Josefina," that he wrote for his wife. Then there is "Mount Olive" that he wrote for Eldee Young and Redd Holt, which evokes when Young and Holt took him to a Black Church one Sunday morning. This track suggests the classic late sixties recordings from Ramsey Lewis and then Young-Holt Unlimited. 

The rest of the album is on a comparable level. "Life Goes On" has an impressionistic flavor, while the trio's interplay is exemplary for "Monk on the Mountain." This number is not about the jazz pianist and composer but inspired by an American who gave up his worldly possessions to become a Buddhist monk. Monteiro's dazzling playing is complemented by Nash's pulse and Anderson's counterpoint. The closing take on "Watermelon Man" brings this superior piano trio recording to a close. It must have been quite a time for the audience at No Black Tie audience when Monteiro, Anderson, and Nash performed.

I received my review copy from a publicist. Here is an 2016 performance of "Mount Olive" by Jeremy Monteiro with a different group.