Cyrus Chestnut: Kaleidoscope

Pianist Cyrus Chestnut’s latest trio album with Eric Wheeler/b and Chris Beck/dr is another rich knot in his belt, cleverly covering material not usually noted in the jazz circles. From the Debussy songbook, Chestnut sizzles over the rumbling rhythm on “Gooliwog’s Cakewalk” and is delicate and dainty alongside Beck on “Jimbo’s Lullaby.” He bops hard to Mozart’s “Turkish Rondo” while doing some intriguing games on timing and harmonics for the Eric Satie’s three “Gymnopedies.” He digs into his Christian roots for a reverent “Lord I Want to Be A CHRistian” in solo format as well as on his own “Prayer for Pauline” with the one indulgence into jazz standards results in a swaying “Darn that Dream. Most fun is the take of the Deep Purple classic rocker “Smoke on the Water” that has Beck’s high hat searing into heavy metal heaven, making you wonder why no one’s attempted this riff before.  This one’s a charmer.

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