Roderick Harper Essence Of... CD

Roderick Harper is a refreshing jazz vocalist who takes chances with familiar standards, jazz standards, and modern pop tunes on his eponymous, second CD as a leader. With trumpeter Nicholas Payton as producer (who also plays piano, bass, and drums on some tracks), Harper enjoys doing the unexpected. "Willow Weep for Me" almost seems played on autopilot on many recordings, but Harper devours Payton's bluesy chart, swooping all over the soulful setting. Harper delights in Payton's snappy arrangement of "Where or When" (with Payton overdubbing the entire rhythm section himself); he offers a swinging treatment of "Waltz for Debbie" that adds a number of musical twists (One minor quibble: Gene Lees, not Bill Evans, wrote its lyrics), and he also connects with his emotional interpretation of "Return to Paradise," an obscure movie theme written by Dimitri Tiomkin and Ned Washington. Even Sade's "Love Is Stronger Than Pride," a normally unpromising AAA ballad, is reshaped by Payton's inventive arrangement, which features pianist Leandro Lopez to good effect, with harmony by Payton (on flugelhorn) and flautist Steve Eisen. Recommended. ~ Ken Dryden

RODERICK HARPERChicago Sun-Times writer Lloyd Sachs states that he is, "a smooth and serious singer." Baton Rouge Morning Advocate writer Rod Dreher calls him, "a very special talent." Jazztimes Magazine proclaims, "he is an able convert to jazz, when Jon Hendricks invited him on stage for a round of Thelonius Monk's 'Rhythmaning.'"Roderick is a native of Washington, D.C. He matriculated at Southern University and A & M College in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, graduating with a Bachelor Degree in Political Science, while he minored in Jazz Studies under the tutelage of jazz clarinetist Alvin Batiste. In school, he formed and was part of numerous jazz groups. One of those groups was Alvin Batiste and the Jazzstranauts. This afforded him the opportunity to come to the attention of jazz pianist Ellis Marsalis. With the recommendation of Batiste, Roderick was invited to sing with Marsalis anytime. This led him to land a featured spot in the Ellis Marsalis Quartet. Being under the experienced hand of Marsalis brought about many opportunities for Roderick to perform with the likes of Jon Hendricks of Lambert, Hendricks & Ross, Betty Carter, Dizzy Gillespie, Wynton, Branford, Delfeayo and Jason Marsalis, Joe Sample, Danny Barker, Kent Jordan, Mark Whitfield, Joe Lavano, Bobby Watson, Marcus Roberts, Cyrus Chestnut, Nicholas Payton, Wessel Anderson, James Carter, The Harper Brothers, Stephen Scott, Brian Blade, Max Roach, Terence Blanchard, The Lincoln Center Jazz Orchestra and many others.Roderick invites you to enjoy his sophomore project entitled, "The Essence Of... Roderick Harper." Grammy-Award Winning Jazz Trumpeter, Nicholas Payton, produced the project. The C.D. is a follow-up to his solo debut, "Beautiful Beginnings," produced by Delfeayo Marsalis.

Personnel: Roderick Harper (vocals); Nicholas Payton (trumpet, flugelhorn, piano, bass instrument, drums); Leandro Lopez-Varady (piano); Ben Willis (bass instrument); Steve Eisen (flute, saxophone); Michael Cook (drums).

Arrangers: Nicholas Payton; Michael Cook.