Paul McCandless - Heresay (CD)

All Music Guide

Paul McCandless is best known for his work as a founding member of Oregon, a pioneer in the genre that came to be labeled "new age." In fact, Oregon's music has always been much more than that oft-maligned label implies, for they combine jazz, classical and world musics into a blend that is at once unique and appealing. McCandless has worked the same terrain with his solo outings, and Heresay is one of his best. There is beauty here, there is polyrhythmic propulsion, there is first-class improvisation. The overall feel is one of optimism and light-heartedness, tempered with a compositional depth of emotion that conjures all sorts of visions in the listener's mind. McCandless himself is a master of many instruments, most of which are rarely heard in a jazz or jazz-inflected setting: oboe, English horn, piccolo sax, soprano sax, clarinet, bass clarinet, penny whistle, wind controller and keyboard synthesizers. He is accompanied by a fine rhythm section of Art Lande on piano, Steve Rodby ...on acoustic bass and Trilok Gurtu on drums and percussion, with additional seasoning from several other musical cohorts. On Heresay, Paul McCandless delivers a wonderful program of instrumental music that knows no boundaries and fits neatly into no single category. - Jim Newsom, All Music Guide Read more Less