January 1998

Jacky Terrasson & Cassandra Wilson - Rendezvous
Blue Note 7243 8 5548420
Released: 1997

by Jay Piriz
jay@soundstage.com

Musical Performance *****
Recording Quality *****
Overall Enjoyment *****

[Reviewed on CD]What do you get when you put a world-class jazz piano player together with a world-class jazz singer? You guessed it--a world-class performance. Jacky Terrasson has a couple of other CDs. One, titled Reach (Blue Note, CDP 7243 8 35739 2 9), was recorded and mastered by Marc Levinson. If you are into great jazz piano performances, Reach is a must-have. What can be said about the honey-dripping pipes of Cassandra Wilson that hasn't already been critically acclaimed by the international musical press? Did you know that Cassandra Wilson was ranked fourth on the New York Daily News list of N.Y.'s coolest 100 people? She has also been heralded as the most important and daring jazz vocalist of her generation.

Well folks, on this CD you get double your money's worth! "Chan's Song" (Herbie Hancock), the second cut on the CD, is a wonderfully interpreted instrumental piano piece that is absolute candy for the ears. Wilson does the "Tennessee Waltz" (Stewart, King), with grace, emotion and sultry sexiness the likes of which I have never heard before. Lonnie Plaxico's basslines and Terrasson's electric piano are like accents on Wilson's every word. It's a beautiful thing. But there's more. Trust me when I tell you that you have never heard a more captivating interpretation of "Autumn Leaves" (Prevert, Kosma) than the one Terrasson does on the fifth cut. I can only tell you that familiar standards like "Tea For Two" (Caesar, Youmans), and "If Ever I Would Leave You" (Lerner, Loewe), are positively delightful and refreshing. You heard it here first--you can't do much better than this for contemporary jazz. The quality of this recording and the total artistic involvement of these performers are right at the top. Get it!


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