All About Jazz

Golden Child

Jared Gold | Posi-Tone Records (2012) By Mark F. Turner, April 2012

Jazz organist Jared Gold continues to make his presence known, both in name and sonically. Energizing and free yet possessed of a comprehensive knowledge of the Hammond B3 organ, he communicates with the language of giants such as Don Patterson and Chris Foreman of the Deep Blue Organ Trio. It's been said that "either you have it or you don't," and Gold's playing bears the truth of the groove on Golden Child. On his fifth recording as a leader, Gold delivers some insightful numbers. "I Wanna Walk"—a fine remake of the traditional "I Want Jesus to Walk with Me"—speaks volumes. While the origins of the song are unclear, Gold's trio takes the tone straight out of the black church, complete with Sunday morning baptismal fire. Its mid-tempo cadence is steady and works without breaking a sweat as Ed Cherry's guitar pours out soulful riffs and Quincy Davis' kit percolates the beat. Gold is also feeling the heat, his Hammond grinding into the bone marrow, pedals dropping a funky bass line and raspy keys singing notes that soar to the heavens. "I Wanna Walk" has a reverse sentiment to Marvin Gaye's "Inner City Blues," whose famous lyrics include "makes me wanna holler and throw up both my hands." Gold's B3 shouts are joyful. 

Golden Child
Jared Gold | Posi-Tone Records (2012) By Brent Black, March, 2012

As cliche driven as this sounds...Jared Gold is indeed the "Golden Child". Organ trios seem to be finding their stride once again with some bordering on the type of organ you heard at the local skating rink while growing up and others being high standard hard hitting dates where the band reacquaints you with the land of rhythm and groove and session rests comfortably in the pocket. Jared Gold's Golden Child is the epitome of the searching musician, a musician finding his own unique voice through extending his harmonic exploration while making his own groove even tighter. Jared Gold kicks off with "A Change Is Gonna Come" and re fries the soul of the legendary Sam Cooke which is further proof you can make a good thing better. Organ trios are notorious for doing their own riff others classic material, picking up their check and calling it a night. Jared Gold contributes five solid original tunes here that if it were not for a working knowledge of the tunes listed it may be difficult to determine where one hit stops and a Gold original takes over as evident with the Gold tune "Hold That Thought." A slight Larry Young influence on this tune pushes past the norm and the rhythmic reinforcement from guitarist Ed Cherry and the finesse of drummer Quincy Davis adds just the right amount of flavor and pop to infuse a swing that is uniquely Gold's. The trio assembled is built on variety with shifting dynamics and working without a harmonic net, Jared Gold is working his own sonic high wire act and with virtually flawless results. Avant-gard texture takes the Johnny Nash classic "I Can See Clearly Now" from the potentially sonic trip wire to a syncopated blues infused exploratory of B3 funk and it is a beautiful thing. Gold and Cherry work their voicing in tandem for an absolute gem. A similar approach is taken with the Glen Campbell performed classic "Witchita Lineman" and the results are stellar. Another Gold original of note would be "Times Up" were meter and harmonics are shifted on the fly and Gold's virtuoso performance is indeed designed to make the jazz purist sit up and take immediate notice. An eclectic set of tunes that are handled with a myriad of influences and arrangements transforms what could easily be the mundane and technically proficient into the artistically gifted of a relatively new shooter in the world of modern jazz. Jared Gold is one of the more gifted talents on the horizon today. More than technically proficient and artistically gifted, Jared Gold is a musical visionary whose musical stock is indeed an arrow pointing straight up! 

All Wrapped Up
Jared Gold | Posi-Tone Records (2011) By Dan Bilawsky, April, 2011

There's a noticeable change in organist Jared Gold's sonic template of choice, before All Wrapped Up even begins. While two out of Gold's three prior releases were quartet outings that used saxophone as the lone horn voice, all three releases were rooted in the traditional organ trio instrumental format. A different guitarist graced each one of those records, with Randy Napoleon, Ed Cherry and Dave Stryker each putting their own unique stamp on Gold's music, but the organist clearly felt it was time to move on, with guitar nowhere to be found on this album. Instead, Gold turns to two stellar horn players (and label mates) to help flesh out his new sound. Saxophonist Ralph Bowen and trumpeter Jim Rotondi add their own singular voices to Gold's music as the organist creates the next chapter in his career as a leader. Five of the eight compositions on the album come from Gold, and the funkiest fare stands out above the rest. "Mama Said" starts off with both horns working through the hip head, as drummer Quincy Davis lays down an easy funk beat and things get even more soulful as solos are passed around. The album-closing "Just A Suggestion" has a few more rhythmic turns in the mix, but moves in a similar direction. Bowen's solo is the clear highlight on this one and his passion for the music is palpable. While more than half of the material comes from Gold, each member of the band contributes one piece. Davis delivers a relaxed swinger ("Piece Of Mine"), but Bowen's "Midnight Snack"is a rhythmic rollercoaster ride, where the groove terrain is in a constant state of flux—though everyone knows exactly what they're doing—as the rhythmic underpinnings continually shift. Rotondi's "Dark Blue" follows, a mellow swinger that's the calm after the storm. When All Wrapped Up reaches its conclusion, two things are abundantly clear: this newfound quartet format hasn't dampened or diminished the creative enthusiasm shown on Gold's earlier releases; and the album continues the steady evolution of one of jazz's most prominent rising star organists. 
 

The Star Ledger

Good as Gold on Hammond B-3Friday, August 25, 2006BY ZAN STEWARTJared Gold has a thing going on with the Hammond B-3 organ. Listen to the Englewood Cliffs native with Dave Stryker's organ trio or backing up sitters-in at the jam session at Cecil's in West Orange, and you hear a vital artist who delivers melodic ingenuity, hefty chords and rhythmic swagger -- all with a buoyant, vibrant sound. Gold appears Friday with guitarist Stryker and drummer Tony Reedus at the Goat Caf in South Orange, and with Oliver Lake's Organ Trio Saturday at Joe's Pub in New York. He says the Hammond got to him when he was studying at William Paterson University in Wayne around 1999, and it's never let go. "It's a powerful instrument," says Gold, 26, from the Montclair home. "There are so many sounds. You can make it sound like a piano (Gold's first instrument), make it sound like a big band. And compared with a piano, I feel that on organ my melodic lines change when I improvise, the way I strike chords changes. And in a trio, I'm interacting with the drummer a lot more, which is really satisfying." Gold initially turned to organ after hearing Larry Goldings, a modern-minded player deeply influenced by Newark-born organ in novator Larry Young Jr. Then Gold discovered veteran blues-to-bop organist Brother Jack McDuff. "I dig his groove, and his bass liners are killer," says Gold. Another organist that caught his attention was Big John Patton. Eventually, Gold found his way to Young. "His comping is very interactive, and his time feel is loose, but he swings hard," he says. These days, Gold is much more interested in finding out who he is as an organist than drawing on influences. "What defines me are the lines I play, how I voice my chords," he says. "And while I used to do a bunch of transcribing, now I only practice what's in my head. I don't hear those lines or chords anywhere else, so it's personal." Gold appears on Stryker's just- out "The Chaser" (Mel Bay). He's also recorded with guitarists Avi Rothbard and William Ash. He says Stryker's trio with Reedus is big fun. "Dave's great," Gold says. "He can go anywhere, play a blues, get in a groove, which feels good and which audiences love. He'll also play something open, stretch it out. And Tony swings his butt off, so he's great fun to work with. Plus they're both nice guys." Other trios that Gold currently works with are led by guitarists Ed Cherry and John Abercrombie, and Montclair saxophonist and composer Lake. Of the latter, Gold says, "Oliver's always got something going. His originals are a big challenge, the way the changes flow, and the way he gets around his horn is amazing." Gold also has a blast working with Montclair-based saxophonist Williams, both at the Cecil's jam, which the trio opens, and in occasional gigs at that club. "Bruce is another guy that loves to stretch," says Gold. "I like that openness. I have a lot of ideas and can go for anything." Gold sees his career as definitely on the right track. "I just want to keep playing with better and better cats, like I am now," he says. "They're challenging me, making me stretch."

Jazz Times Magazine

GuitartistryDecember 2006 issueDAVE STRYKER --- The Chaser-- Mel BayDave Strykers second release for the Mel Bay label, The Chaser, features organist Jared Gold and drummer Tony Reedus. Harking back to Strykers early days with organ legend Jack McDuff, it finds the guitarist in absolute top form. Gold, a fiery and sophisticated young player, is someone Stryker should keep close at hand. A sense of effortless, swinging chemistry permeates the entire session. There are five Stryker originals, beginning with the minor-blues vehicle The Great Divide, which charges out of the gate but then slows down radically for the organ solo. Brighter Days ushers in a sunnier mood and bears a passing resemblance to the standard Beautiful Friendship. Strykers waltz version of I Wish You Love entails some effective pedal-point harmony; his ballad adaptation of the old Carpenters hit Close to You begins at the bridge. The date proceeds with the quick 4/4 swing of the title track, the more exotic 7/4 of Katmandu and the burning, darkly hued Mode for J.W. (for the late James Williams, Reedus uncle). Strykers multi-meter take on I Didnt Know What Time It Was, elaborate but completely unforced, contrasts wonderfully with the greasy shuffle blues of Harold Vicks Our Miss Brooks. -David Adler

Jazz Improv

Dave Stryker THE CHASER -- Mel Bay Records
By Dan Bilawsky

Dave Strykers new CD, The Chaser, brings the guitarist back to the organ trio format. Stryker, no stranger to this type of ensemble, spent two years performing with the late Jack McDuff and recorded a prior solo album with Adam Nussbaum and Joey DeFrancesco. The aforementioned organ trio album, entitled Stardust, was heavy on standards and sprinkled with two Stryker originals. This new release, with Tony Reedus on drums and Jared Gold on organ, balances four classics with five Stryker originals. The Great Divide, which was superbly performed and recorded on last years live release by the Stryker/Slagle Band, is a mid-tempo bop-inflected tune. Strykers playing, which seems to be equally bluesy, soulful, boporiented, and modern, is almost horn-like in phrasing. The band slows things down Golds simmering solo before returning to original tempo to finish off the song. Brighter Days, another Stryker original, is a fairly straight-ahead tune that gives Reedus a chance trade eight measure phrases with the Stryker/ Gold combination. I Wish You Love is a bouncy jazz waltz, which is given a light touch treatment by the trio. Gold minimizes his playing, Stryker is at his gentlest and Reedus moves it along with grace and precision. Close To You, the well-known Bacharach/David song, opens up with Strykers rubato solo playing. This song is basically a solo vehicle for Stryker. Gold lightly moves beneath the guitarist, who takes care of the melodic and soloing duties on his own, while Reedus moves his left foot to and fro to keep the time on two and four. The Chaser is another Stryker original that also appeared on the previously mentioned Stryker/Slagle band release. This is an uptempo musical workout that demonstrates the soloing and creative skills of Tony Reedus to great effect. Katmandu begins with a freely played introduction and turns into a terrific Latininfluenced tune in seven. Golds solo is one of his best on the album and Strykers playing seems as relaxed and confident as ever. Mode J.W., another mid-tempo original, is Strykers tribute to the late James Williams. I Didnt Know What Time20It Was is the highlight of the album. Stryker plays on the title by constantly shifting the meter and feel of the piece. After the constant shifts, which come during the head, the piece settles into a medium-to-slow groove that allows the trio to simmer and cook for a while. The meter and feel changes return when it seems that the musicians, and the listener, have just been lulled into a sense of comfort and metric stability. This piece is pure fun from start to finish. Our Miss Brooks is a blues tune by Harold Vick that, according to Bill Milkowskis liner notes, is a nod to Daves own roots on the organ circuit with Jack McDuff. Stryker, once again, has created an album that mixes traditional styles and unique compositions/ arrangements into a single appealing package.I'm a title. Click here to add your own text and edit me.