Trumpet player Ambrose Akinmusire is quite simply the now sound of jazz, and it's great that Universal Music has released this, his second album on Blue Note Records, here in New Zealand. Ambrose, 32, paid his dues in his hometown of San Francisco, playing professionally, and as a member of Berkeley High School Jazz Ensemble. He then moved to the Big Apple, honing his skills and achieving a degree at the Manhattan School of Music.
By 2001 Ambrose's recording career was under way, although he was only 19. Sessions included back-up for Steve Coleman, Vijay Iyer and Esperanza Spalding. By 2007 he was ready for his own studio time, recording Prelude ... in Cora for Fresh Sound. Blue Note Records recognised his abilities by signing him and releasing When the Heart Emerges Glistening in 2011.
The Imagined Savior is Far Easier to Paint is a complex and satisfying modern jazz album. While Akinmusire's contribution is significant it's more the quality of the musicians and the diversity of material that make the album exceptional. There's an edgy approach on some tracks, but with a number of very different vocal compositions, it's the overall quality of the sidemen and women who lift the music to a level which is indicative of Akinmusire's approach.
Assisting Akinmusire are Walter Smith on tenor sax, Sam Harris on piano, Charles Altura guitar, Harish Raghavan bass and Justin Brown drums. An album that reflects the qualities of the past but is very much of today.
