Jamie Breiwick: Awake: Volume 2 - The Music of Don Cherry
Shifting Paradigm

Many jazz artists have honoured Ornette Coleman's memory with covers of his compositions and in the case of Broken Shadows, the quartet fronted by saxophonists Tim Berne and Chris Speed, a band project. Don Cherry, who performed alongside Ornette for many years in his quartet and later in Old and New Dreams with fellow Coleman associates, hasn't received the same amount of attention as his former bandleader, which is understandable given Ornette's transformative impact. But as a dedicated global music explorer, Cherry left a lasting mark of his own and these days is being ever more recognized as an inspiration. Look no further for evidence than trumpeter Jamie Breiwick, who's not only releasing music associated with the late pocket trumpeter but established his Awake Nu group project as an outlet for Cherry's music. It's but one of many bands fronted by Breiwick, others being KASE, the Lesser Lakes Trio, and the Monk repertory outfit Dreamland.

Awake: Volume 2 is obviously the sophomore effort from Awake Nu, which in its current form augments Breiwick with saxophonists Lenard Simpson (alto) and Chris Weller (tenor), bassist Tim Ipsen, and drummer Devin Drobka. All five are also credited with percussion, and Ipsen koto too. The five roar through six pieces in approximately thirty-one minutes, with four written or co-written by Cherry and the others composed by Ramuntcho Matta and, wouldn't ya know, Ornette. Were Cherry alive to hear it, he'd be delighted, no doubt, by the beautiful noise Breiwick and company generated on June 2, 2022 at Clown Horn Studios.

Many of the directions Cherry explored are present on the set, from African-driven percussion workouts and folk music-inspired material to ecstatic jazz. The release isn't so much about copying Cherry's music, however, as it is capturing his spirit. Laying a muscular foundation, Drobka initiates Matta's “Benoego” with a funky groove that has Breiwick squeezing notes through his horn and percussion instruments building on the heady rumble—more an atmospheric scene-setter than full composition. Up next is “Bird Boy,” by Cherry and his Codona bandmate Nana Vasconcelos, which sidles into view slowly and seductively, prodded by a tenor saxophone ostinato and embellished by a sultry theme and a muted trumpet solo by the leader. As entrancing is “Ganesh,” which spreads inspired horn musings across a mantra-like bass figure and a rolling drum-and-percussion base before switching to frenetic action four minutes in.

From Cherry's 1973 recording Relativity Suite comes “March of the Hobbits,” an ecstatic, crowd-rousing romp that exudes joy and celebration in equal measure. Originally heard on Ornette's Sound Museum release, “Monsieur Allard” is instantly identifiable as a Coleman composition, and Breiwick and company channel the rollicking rambunctiousness of the legend's original group, Ipsen and Drobka furiously driving the pulse like Haden and Blackwell in their prime and the soloists responding to it in kind, the leader particularly Cherry-esque in his solo. That aforementioned koto is prominently featured in the meditative “Interlude with Puppets,” the inclusion of the instrument one of many ways Breiwick testifies to Cherry's global sensibility.

July 2023