Kurt Elling - The Gate (2011)

A highly adept singer and writer who possesses a resonant baritone and
four-octave range, Kurt Elling has won a global fan base, numerous awards,
and countless accolades for his distinctive brand of vocal jazz. Given the
depth and vision of his recordings and his theatrical performance style, an
Elling concert can contain ranting, beat poetry, dramatically sung readings
of Garcia Lorca and Rainier Maria Rilke, and tunes by Ellington, Cole
Porter, Johnny Mercer, and the Beatles, complete with hard-swinging scat.

Since the 1990s, Kurt Elling has proved a most innovative jazz singer. His
recordings - particularly The Messenger, Man in the Air, and Nightmoves -
also reveal him to be a modern jazz visionary. On The Gate, Elling presents
nine songs gathered from rock, pop, soul, and jazz. Produced by Don Was,
Elling is accompanied by longtime pianist Laurence Hobgood, saxophonist Bob
Mintzer, guitarist John McLean, bassist John Pattitucci, alternating
drummers Terreon Gulley and Kobie Watkins, and percussionist Lenny Castro.

The material here is evocative of Elling's all encompassing view of jazz as
an ever-innovative popular music. It opens with a subtle, deeply emotive
and poetic reading of King Crimson's "Matte Kudasai." Commencing with only
Patitucci's upright bass before Gulley and Hobgood enter from the edges,
Elling croons languidly at the upper reaches of his range. McLean's guitar
is used economically and delicately until his solo. Joe Jackson's "Steppin'
Out" extends beyond the realm of the author's Cole Porter-influenced pop,
transforming it into a warm, swinging, cool jazz number.

The sparsity of Hobgood's phrasing underscoring Elling's voice shows
remarkable restraint; Castro's hand percussion counters Watkins' hi-hat
groove and makes it pop. Herbie Hancock's "Come Running to Me" changes
shape entirely, from its funky fretless bass and vocoder roots comes a bona
fide soul-jazz midtempo ballad. Stevie Wonder's "Golden Lady" backs off the
funk; but the exacting interplay between Hobgood and Gulley keeps the soul
intact; Elling reinvents it as an acoustic jazz ballad.

The Beatles' "Norwegian Wood" subtly restructures the tune's rhythmic
accents without forsaking a note of its melody. Earth, Wind & Fire's "After
the Love Has Gone" is transformed into a limpid, nearly ethereal tone poem.
The reading of Miles Davis' "Blue in Green" is based on Al Jarreau's
arrangement, but it opens up more: space and texture grant his voice room
to explore the melody's interior. "Samurai Cowboy," an original co-written
with Marc Johnson, features Elling's multi-tracked vocals in a chanted
chorus, underscoring a syncopated blues, highlighted by Mintzer's gritty
fills.

"Nighttown, Lady Bright" closes it as poetic, post-beat improvisation with
Elling reciting as well as singing. The Gate presents Elling at the top of
his game; it is a song cycle that is mesmerizing and mysterious as it is
provocative and compelling.