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The Art Gore Quartet
On Saturday April 21st, the Art Gore Quartet performed a mini-set at the Public Library Main Branch as part of the Jazz of the Month Club series supported by Jazz Artist and Educator Jamey Aebersold. The Quartet featured Art Gore on Drums, Brent Gallaher on Tenor & Soprano Saxophone, Jim Anderson on Bass, and Jim Connerly on Piano.
Art’s smooth start on the set let the Quartet into their opener, “Invitation”. As Brent joined in with the Tenor, the quartet set into a driving, yet relaxed tempo. The flow of the piece was so steady, fluent, and enjoyable, it was difficult to determine when the quartet transitioned into “Mood Alley”, a piece written by Tom Harold.
The next number was “Ju Ju”, written by Saxophonist Wayne Shorter. This piece began with Art performing a “cadence”, of sorts on the toms. The remaining parts of the Rhythm Section joins in, then Brent enters on the tenor with a bright, uplifting melody. During a certain part of this ¾ time piece, Art performs a solo beginning with the mallets, then switching to his bare hands on the low toms in a “Brush-Like” fashion.
For the next piece, Art Gore playfully challenged the audience to guess the song; and as soon as the group began, everyone knew what it was. The quartet takes an almost “smooth jazz” turn with a very seductive delivery of Roberta Flack & Donnie Hathaway’s “The Closer I get to you”. Jim Connerly’s fingers appeared to float very lightly across the keys throughout his alluring solo.
After a brief intermission, the quartet hit it hard with Wayne Shorter’s “Tell it like it is” – a hard driving, upbeat tempo leaving no room for denying the quartet’s presence.
The group wrapped up with “Bolivia”, which began with a very intense snare opening. Jim Anderson & Jim Connerly were undeniably “on the same page” carrying the fast paced tempo. “Bolivia” was an appropriate closer; involving improvisations from each member that really lit up the crowd on a beautiful Saturday afternoon.
The show was quite enjoyable, and the audience appeared to share the silent agreement wishing it could have lasted longer. The “Straight Jazz” style of the Art Gore Quartet was in full form, with a bold message that Jazz is alive and hot in Cincinnati.
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