WILLY RODRIGUEZ

IN THE UNKNOWN (I WILL FIND YOU)

Sunnyside Records

Willy Rodriguez, drums/composer; Leo Genovese, piano/Hamond Rhodes/composer; Ingrid Laubrock, tenor saxophone; Allan Harris, spoken word.

Allan Harris’ voice whispers, “All I did was smile, and smile and smile.”  That opens this album.

Then the ethereal music of Willy Rodriguez begins, created by piano, tenor saxophone and drums.  The first song is “In the Unknown (I Will Find You). It’s the title tune, inspired by the experience of losing a loved one.

“Before my mother passed, I told her that we would see each other again.  Is that possible?  Maybe not, but with these compositions, I feel like I’m getting closer to that place,” writes Rodriguez in his liner notes.

Drummer, composer, bandleader, Willy Rodriguez presents an album of thought-provoking music that tickles the soul and feeds the imagination.  Recorded at the legendary Rudy Van Gelder Studio, Rodriguez leads an adventurous, bassless aggregation, a trio featuring only his drums, the piano of Leo Genovese and Ingrid Laubrock’s tenor saxophone.  She flies, wild as a bird in flight pursuant of space and speed on “The Perplexity of Eternity.”  It’s track #2 on this album.

Interspersed throughout this project is the smooth, calming voice of Allan Harris, using spoken word to accentuate the songs and express their musical feelings with words.

These compositions are like a Diary, unfolding the deep, precious emotions of Willy Rodriguez on his path through life. There is one song not composed by Rodriguez, but by his pianist (Genovese) that’s titled “The Route.”  It has its own story to tell, with piano agility dancing beneath the saxophone melody, building the tension and smudging the notes against universal skies, painting a road he dares us to travel.

On “Follow the Light” Genovese changes instruments and mans the Hammond Rhodes keyboard. His organ sound draws me into the quite center of this original music.

The Willy Rodriguez music is Avant-garde, but beautiful.  It’s not stuffing the notes down my throat or screaming the music at me. These compositions are full of depth and palatable, sweet to the taste.

Reviewed by Dee Dee McNeil

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