Ray Gallon

Label: Cellar Music Group

Grand Company showcases an intriguing blend of Ray's original compositions and fresh, reimagined takes on classic standards. This project is the realization of Gallon's longstanding aspiration to record in a trio setting with two extraordinary musicians who had a profound influence on his early development. The bandleader is joined on this monumental release by the legendary Ron Carter, widely regarded as the premier bassist of our time, and acclaimed drummer Lewis Nash, known for his phenomenal work with such luminaries as Tommy Flanagan, Betty Carter, Kenny Barron and Dizzy Gillespie.

To listen to pianist Ray Gallon is to take a journey through the great lineage of jazz piano from its inception all the way up to the cutting-edge present. Imbued with the vocabulary, sensibilities and soul of the very architects of the jazz artform, Gallon’s sound is right-at-home emanating from the strings of the piano at the iconic Van Gelder Studios - emanating through the very room in which many of the classic jazz albums of yesteryear were recorded. There is no grander company for Gallon to share this trio outing with than bassist Ron Carter and drummer Lewis Nash. The bandleader remarks: “Both Ron and Lewis played significant roles in my musical development, particularly during those formative years. Recording a trio album with these two remarkable artists has been at the top of my bucket list ever since; doing it at Rudy Van Gelder’s, on that hallowed Steinway B, was icing on the cake. The date was smooth sailing, with everything recorded in one or two takes.”

While this is Gallon’s very first trio outing as bandleader with these fine musicians, these three masters share a long history of collaboration. In the late 1980s, Gallon and Nash had the opportunity to perform together with Ron Carter in Carter’s Quintet and Nonet, which cemented their musical bond. Gallon notes that “this was like something of a reunion for us, which made this date an extra special occasion.”

Grand Company has garnered praise from GRAMMY winning pianist Bill Charlap for its exceptional trio concept. Charlap rhapsodizes in the liner notes: “This is my favorite kind of trio playing - the inimitable and distinctive personal and collective sound of Ray Gallon, Ron Carter and Lewis Nash has transparency and clarity, where every note and gesture mean something. Ray Gallon’s music is informed, passionate, and personal. He possesses a unique rhythmic imagination and a wrought iron vocabulary. Grand Company is a milestone.”

The album itself strikes a balance of tradition and innovation with the performance of five original pieces by Gallon, as well as his arrangements of four timeless standards. Gallon’s original pieces strike a personal chord, this is improvisational music in its highest form of storytelling - a true conversation between three artists with an unparalleled command of the language. Grand Company begins with Gallon’s arrangement of the Duke Ellington classic “Drop Me Off in Harlem”. From the very first selection, the ear is piqued with re-harmonizations, and stellar rhythmic and melodic interplay between the trio members. Gallon and Carter offer beautifully crafted solos that set the tone for an album rife with fantastic melodic invention.