Pianist/educator Mark Levine is a master of straightahead Latin jazz. The members of his Latin
Tinge quartet all share his orientation towards modern bop, enhanced by a remarkable ability to lay
down a pretty mean
clave beat. On Isla, the group tackles compositions by Cedar Walton and Kenny Garrett as
well as standards of both the Latin and popular songbook variety.
On Garrett's "Ain't Nothing But the Blues," the tempo is relaxed and the mood keeps cool.
Levine's playing here is sweet and soulful, while the percussion duo of Michael Spiro and Paul van
Wageningen erects a sturdy rhythmic structure. Dizzy Gillespie's "Con Alma" is
bracketed by excerpts from a traditional Vietnamese tune. And the group effectively transforms
"Tea For Two," that oldest of chestnuts, into a vehicle for Levine's smoothly gliding lines.
These tunes are typical of this outing, which overall is less aggressive than Levine's previous
release, Serengeti.
The only real burner on the disc is Walton's "Black." This is also one of the most
engaging cuts, as it offers large tracts of space to the hot percussion as well as Levine's rich chords
and dizzying flights of fancy.
The group receives some additional support from Harvey Wainapel, who contributes a moody
clarinet line to "Isla" and a lyrically reflective soprano saxophone to "Seis
Pa'Chuito." These help to break things up, but also expose the disc's missing element. A little
more variety would make the disc better suited to intensive listening. For most real-world listening
situations, however, Isla is a finely produced album that should have broad appeal.
Visit Mark Levine on the web.
This review originally appeared in All About Jazz: San
Francisco.
~ Forrest Dylan Bryant
