Album Review: Live at JazzAsona: The Music of Gregg Hill from Adonis Rose

 

Artist:  Adonis Rose
Album:  Live at JazzAscona: The Music of Gregg Hill
Label: Cold Plunge Records
Release Date:  September 25, 2026
Gregg Hill Website: www.gregghilljazz.com
Cold Plunge Records: www.coldplungerecords.com

New Orleans, Louisiana's Storyville jazz is presented at Switzerland's 42nd JazzAscona in July 2025 by the leadership of drummer Adonis Rose on his new release  Live at JazzAscona: The Music of Gregg Hill.  Audiences experienced scat jazz, swing, boogie woogie,  rhapsody blues, and bebop, all the ingredients that put Storyville's artists into the mass consciousness.  The live recording documents Adonis Rose and a seven-piece New Orleans jazz ensemble's performance at the festival, showcasing their interpretation of the music of Gregg Hill, Keith Jarrett, and Billy Strayhorn.

Produced by Rose and Gregg Hill with arrangements by alto saxophonist Rex Gregory and featuring vocalist Phillip Manuel alongside Ashlin Parker on trumpet, Miles Berry on tenor sax, Seth Finch on piano, Max Moran on acoustic bass, and Rose on drums, the six-track program includes four of Hill's originals with one work by Keith Jarrett and one by Billy Strayhorn.  The written material opens the ensemble to venturing into expressive improvisations that infuse the tracks with distinctive characteristics.

The dreamy atmosphere of Strayhorn's gem "Lush Life" is curated by the sparkling improvisations and melodic doodles of Seth Finch's keys as Manuel's  husky timbres seduce the listener into the harmonious imagery.  There is a Judy Garland "Somewhere Over the Rainbow" tint in the interpretation of the track that elevates the listener's senses.  Conversely, "First Impulse" swings and bops with a vivacious pairing of the rhapsody blues emanating from the  rhythmic beating of Moran's bass and  Rose's drums with Gregory's vaulting sax amplifying the jubilant climate.   The recording slides into the swinging rhythm of "Melissa's Tune," as Gregory's saxophone generates a flurry of swirling motion.

Manuel's vocal inflections craft a storytelling-shape along "Tone Colors" that make emotive impressions along the track, switching to a frolicking scat across Keith Jarrett's iconic piece "Bop Me," coiled in a boogie woogie groove.  "Cat's Cradle" is harnessed by the bluesy riffs of Gregory's sax and refined phrasing of Finch's keys, catapult by the beefy thumping of Rose's drums.   Manuel additionally wrote lyrics for Hill's tracks, "First Impulse," "Tone Colors," and "Cat's Cradle.."

Rooted in the jazz tradition of New Orleans's Storyville movement and complimented by east coast bebop, Midwest blues, southern boogie woogie, and west coast swing, the leadership of drummer Adonis Rose guides the jazz ensemble across a wide swathe of the jazz spectrum while anchored in the principle of self-expression.   Based in New Orleans, Adonis Rose has more than fifty recordings as a leader and collaborator, demonstrating his commitment to keeping jazz traditions relevant to modern audiences.

Musicians:
Adonis Rose — drums
Phillip Manuel — vocals
Rex Gregory — alto saxophone, arrangements
Ashlin Parker — trumpet
Miles Berry — tenor saxophone
Seth Finch — piano
Max Moran — acoustic bass