CHARLES CHEN

THE LONG WAY HOME

Cellar Music

Charles Chen, piano; Felix Lemerle, guitar; Bill Crow, bass; Steve Little, drums.

Charles Chen has a touch of Erroll Garner in his piano style.  I can hear it vividly when he plays “You Turned the Tables on Me.”

This album is a neat package of generational blending, inclusive of two young musicians mixing their contemporary talents with two legendary musicians who have been making music long before they were born.

Bassist Bill Crow, born in 1927, is renowned for his work with Gerry Mulligan.  As a young musician, he dabbled in playing piano, trumpet, baritone horn in sixth grade, drums in the high school swing band, and finally settled on double bass, which he taught himself in 1950, while in New York City.  Shortly after mastering the instrument, he was performing as a bass player with folks like Stan Getz, the Claude Thornhill band and the Terry Gibbs Quartet.

Renowned drummer, Steve Little is a bit younger than his peer, Bill Crow.  Bill is 98 years old and Steve Little is 91.  Together, their combined talents span nearly the entirety of modern jazz history.  Their perspectives and experiences stretch over nearly eight decades and bring richness to this project.

Band leader, composer and pianist Charles Chen was born October 28, 1988. Although still in his thirties, he has performed with a wide range of notable musicians including Peter Washington, Billy Drummond, Randy Brecker, Bob Sheppard, Kenny Washington, Roy McCurdy and more. His debut album “Charles, Play!” was named by DownBeat Magazine as one of the Best Albums of 2024. I hear his piano nods to the great Ahmad Jamal on some of his arrangements, like on the end of “Dream Dancing.”

Felix Lemerle’s guitar soaks up the spotlight on a tune called, “Squatty Roo.”  The quartet swings their way through this composition with energy and joy. They also play an old doo-wop arrangement of Sam Cooke’s hit song, “You Send Me.”  Chen writes in his liner notes that Mr. Little once played drums with that famed R&B crooner, Sam Cooke. Steve Little’s tasty drums are also brightly featured during an Ellington medley. Little is celebrated for being a longtime member of Duke Ellington’s band. Charles Chen plays a medley of Ellington’s popular tunes including “Prelude to a Kiss,” “I Got it Bad (and That Ain’t Good)” and “Sophisticated Lady.”

This is a wonderful album of music standards and great musicianship. Charles Chen is a brilliant, young, piano star on the rise.  An exciting addition to this album are the brief interviews recorded as in-person verbal histories of both music legends, Steve Little and Bill Crow.

Reviewed by Dee Dee McNeil

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