Time's Tales Jeff Ballard

• 1Virgin Forest07:44
• 2Western Wren (A Bird Call)03:23
• 3Beat Street07:16
• 4The Man I Love05:53
• 5Free 100:47
• 6Hanging Tree07:23
• 7Dal (A Rhythm Song)05:52
• 8El Reparador De Suenos07:35
• 9Mivakpola04:34
• 10Free 306:01
• Total Runtime56:28

Info for Time's Tales

In the Jeff Ballard Trio, wach musician comes from a completely different place: Lionel is from Benin, Miguel from Puerto Rico and Jeff from North America. The band and music come together in the love, respect, and open-mindedness they have for all genres of music across the globe and from all epochs. There are no borders to dictate their sound except their own desires and taste. Each musician brings his own cultural roots to their music, whether it be from the American song book or an Iranian folk melody.

Their sound is defined and proudly flavored with the distinction imparted by each of their countries’ heritage. It is contemporary and relevant within the current times. The repertoire they play includes Thelonius Monk, Iranian folk melodies, Bartok, Duke Ellington, George Gershwin and improvised melodies from bird calls. They cover songs from pop artists such as Queens Of The Stone Age and Stevie Wonder, as well as playing their own compositions.

The music is full of complex rhythms, exotic harmonies and soulful melodies. It is rhythmically very precise whilst playing openly and freely, deliberately pushing and breaking down any limits that harmony and rhythm might present resulting in dynamic tensions and suspense.

Time's Tales is the trio's first CD. The overall idea of the recording was to make the sound reflect the character of the band as closely as possible. Everything was recorded with all musicians playing in the same room together and was recorded to 2 inch analogue tape, capturing the organic nature of the group's sound and exciting musical interaction between the players. The repertoire on Time's Tales is as varied and adventurous as the trio's live performances are.

The CD opens with Lionel's Virgin Forest which, with the yells and a laugh at the beginning of the track, exhibits the enthusiasm there is in this ensemble. The song is a funky African groove in 9/4. The second piece is a transcription of a Western Wren bird call. It features Ballard with brushes weaving in and out of the melody at the beginning and a rapid call and response between Loueke and Zenon. The improvisation reaches a critical tension point and where it finally explodes into recapitulation of the melody.

Track 3, Beat Street, was composed by Ballard. The song's highly energetic melody and parade-like dance beats, changing tempos and shifting directions, mark the up-lifting character of this song and adventurous spirit of the band. Gershwin's The Man I Love exhibits the deep knowledge and embrace of the American music tradition.

Free 1 is a short free improvisation which prepares the listener's ears for the change of sonics from the very acoustic to the extremely electric sounds on track six. Track six is Hangin' Tree, a cover of one of today's more popular rock groups, Queens Of The Stone Age. In this piece the band reveals another layer of unsuspected character.

Dal (A Rhythm Song) is taken from Bela Bartok's 44 Duos for 2 Violins. This haunting piece works wonderfully with the two voices of alto saxophone and guitar. Silvio Rodriguez's bolero El Reperador Del Suenos with the modern rhythmic elements Zenon has worked into the arrangement, still maintains the integrity of its ageless cuban roots.

Track nine is Loueke's Mivakpola. Rich in dark colors and textures, the slow tempo create a gentle meditative mood. The unique fleshy sound of drums helps to create this mood, as does Lionel's lovely voice which is heard on this track. Free 3 is what could be considered a glimpse into the future of the band. Completely improvised, still the song feels guided by something which heads towards a promise of what will come next.

Jeff Ballard, drums and percussion
Lionel Loueke, guitar, vocals
Miguel Zenon, alto saxophone

Jeff Ballard
grew up in Santa Cruz, California. He recalls when he was a child laying in bed listening to the music his father would play every weekend: Count Basie, Ella Fitzgerald, Louie Armstrong, Sergio Mendez, Oscar Peterson, Milton Nascimento; how he loved the sound and the speed of Ed Thigpen’s brushes on the snare. “I remember feeling the power of a Basie big band shout chorus which would then suddenly disappear into some quiet dancing riff. It was the swing in it, which excited me the most. I also remember how it felt traveling thru sounds of the jungle in a Milton Nascimento record. The drums, percussion, and voice, would sound as if they either came from the earth or were made of water. And I was so happy to hear the joy of Ella and Louie singing and playing together. I think that that early exposure has made me part of what I am today, especially in regards to my love for sound.”

In a community college he studied music theory and played in a big band as well as started working in small groups that played music for all kinds of occasions. He realized then that there are ways to play the drums, which are particular for each occasion. Each genre has requirements with needs to be met. “A big band needs a propelling and simple drive, more supportive, for the ensemble to sit in. Brazilian drumming needs that driving bass drum with an insistent yet light dancing quality with the hands. Reggae asks for a sophisticated groove comparable to that of swing. Afro Cuban music I can compare to boxing: something like sparring with an opponent. I think the challenge is in the search for finding the music’s particular needs. The joy is in the discovery.” During this time, while living in and playing around San Francisco, he became absorbed with ‘modern’ jazz. “ Hearing Tony Williams play with Miles completely changed the way I played drums. Hearing John Coltrane and Elvin Jones, and listening to Ornette Coleman’s music changed my whole world. It was like coming home.”

At the age of twenty-five he began playing with Ray Charles. “ We toured 8 months straight every year with the band. Although we often played the same songs and arrangements every night, Ray was always able to make us feel as if it was for the very first time. The drum chair was the best seat in the house really. I only had to watch Ray’s feet to know where and what he wanted the groove to be. What a great school.”

After three years with Ray Charles, Jeff Ballard move to New York City where he found like-minded musicians who were drawing on tradition as well as searching for their own interpretation of playing and expression in music. “Kurt Rosenwinkel, Mark Turner, Brad Mehldau, Avishai Cohen, Guillermo Klein, Larry Grenadier, Ben Allison…and so many others. I started playing music which was of a more personal nature and which drew from an extremely wide palette of influence. I remember, for example, investigating Argentine rhythms and transposing them on to the drumset; or introducing middle-eastern rhythms to my drums. I guess you could say the approach here was in finding the sound equivalent on the drums to something from the original: the dry staccato sound of the dancer’s shoes on a hard wooden floor, the ornamental sounds of bells strapped to the wrists of the percussionists, and then synthesizing my own version of what I felt would fit musically into the drums. Then there were investigations in finding my own things with the drums. Playing and recording with all of these musicians have opened up the opportunity for me to explore my infatuation with sound. It is the sound, not the note per se, which touches me the most. ”Jeff Ballard has also played and toured with Eddie Harris, Bobby Hutcherson, Buddy Montgomery, Lou Donaldson, Mike Stern, and Danilo Perez. He joined Chick Corea in 1999 and continues to play in his various projects. “ I learned so much playing with him during those six years. I encountered thru him a high speed of thought in improvisation and a constant clarity of expression in the music. The chance to play in all kinds of different musical situations like with his sextet Origin or the New Trio or large symphonies brought a heightened awareness of touch to my playing as well. I very rarely used monitors on the gig. It was all about hearing the sound of the instruments themselves on stage.”

Currently Jeff Ballard is a member of the Brad Mehldau Trio, Joshua Redman’s Elastic Band, performs periodically with Corea, and is a co-leader of Fly, a collective trio with Mark Turner and Larry Grenadier. Fly is a sparse unit with a focused approach in which the lead voice often changes instruments, or simply vanishes into a three-way dialogue. “Interdependence is total. We all wanted to pare down and see what we could do sonically with this type of instrumentation. There is an extra harmonic and sonic space compared to other formations. Changing the traditional roles of our instruments is just one consequence of this. Also it allows us to explore our own compositions.” Their latest self entitled record, Fly, and ensuing concerts have won critical acclaim as best of the year 2004.

This album contains no booklet.