Concentric Circles (Kenny Barron album)

Concentric Circles is a studio album by American jazz pianist Kenny Barron.[11] The record was released on May 4, 2018 via Blue Note label.[12]

Concentric Circles
Studio album by Kenny Barron
Released	May 4, 2018
Recorded	March 19–20, 2017
Studio	Systems Two Studios, Brooklyn, New York
Genre	Jazz
Length	66:17
Label	Blue Note
Producer	Kenny Barron
Kenny Barron chronology
Book of Intuition (2016) Concentric Circles (2018) Without Deception (2020)

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
All About Jazz	[1]
AllMusic	[2]
Blurt	[3]
Financial Times	[4]
The Guardian	[5]
RTÉ.ie	[6]
Spectrum Culture	[7]
The Times	[8]
Tom Hull	B+[9]
Winnipeg Free Press	[10]

Background

This is Barron's debut album for Blue Note. The album features Barron with a new band consisting of three strong emerging players—tenor saxophonist Dayna Stephens, trumpeter Mike Rodriguez, and drummer Johnathan Blake—and a long-term Barron's collaborator bassist Kiyoshi Kitagawa.[13] The record consists of 11 tracks of which there are eight original compositions written by Barron.

Reception

Matt Collar of AllMusic wrote "While Barron has never sounded anything short of virtuosic, his skills have only deepened over the years. He commands the album, framing his musicians with richly textured chord voicings one minute, and launching into evocative improvisational asides the next. What's particularly refreshing is how immediate and of-the-moment the album feels. Concentric Circles is the sound of a jazz master continuing to push forward, buoyed by his bandmates and the lessons of the past".[2] A reviewer of Keyboard stated "Concentric Circles is another sparkling jewel in Barron’s crown; and it surely won’t be the last".[14] Writing for JazzTimes, Thomas Conrad stated, "The set list is not unusual, containing mostly recent originals plus typical choices like a Brazilian piece and a Monk tune. What makes a Barron record special is execution, the distinctive substance and elegance..."[13]

Will Layman of Spectrum Culture noted "This is a program marked by variety as well as quality... Barron’s affection for Latin grooves is here in spades."[7] Paddy Cahoe of RTÉ.ie added "Kenny Barron's Concentric Circles is the legendary jazz pianist's first bona fide quintet release since 2003's Images and it is a fine affair, skirting around the lighter edges of bop, with Afro-Latin and bossa nova traces".[6] Dave Gelly of The Guardian commented "Now, a pianist, composer and bandleader of apparently infinite resource and ingenuity, he records albums as close to perfection as anyone could wish. Lately they have tended to be piano trios, but this sleek new quintet sounds full of promise".[5] Keith Black writing for Winnipeg Free Press added, "Kenny Barron has been a gift to the jazz world for 50 years and hopefully is not close to being done yet."[10]

Track listing

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
1.	"DPW"	Barron	4:52
2.	"Concentric Circles"	Barron	7:27
3.	"Blue Waters"	Barron	5:40
4.	"A Short Journey"	Barron	5:29
5.	"Aquele Frevo Axe"	Cesar Medes, Caetano Veloso	8:16
6.	"Von Hangman"	Barron	4:44
7.	"In the Dark"	Barron	7:01
8.	"Baile"	Barron	5:17
9.	"L's Bop"	Lenny White	5:55
10.	"I'm Just Sayin'"	Barron	6:52
11.	"Reflections"	Thelonious Monk	4:44
Total length:			66:17

Personnel

Band

• Kenny Barron – piano, producer
• Kiyoshi Kitagawa – bass
• Johnathan Blake – drums
• Dayna Stephens – saxophone
• Mike Rodriguez – trumpet, flugelhorn

Production

• Karen Kennedy – co-producer
• Max Ross – mixing, mastering
• Joe Marciano – recording

References

1. Jurkovic, Mike (May 11, 2018). "Kenny Barron: Concentric Circles". All About Jazz. Retrieved 28 November 2018.
2. Collar, Matt. "Kenny Barron / Kenny Barron Quintet Concentric Circles". AllMusic. Retrieved 28 November 2018.
3. Toland, Michael (4 May 2018). "KENNY BARRON QUINTET – Concentric Circles". Blurt. Retrieved 28 November 2018.
4. Hobart, Mike (4 May 2018). "Kenny Barron Quintet: Concentric Circles — 'a blend of classic and contemporary'". Financial Times. Retrieved 28 November 2018.
5. Gelly, Dave (12 August 2018). "Kenny Barron Quintet: Concentric Circles – infinite ingenuity". The Guardian. Retrieved 28 November 2018.
6. Kehoe, Paddy (30 June 2018). "Kenny Barron Quintet - Concentric Circles". RTÉ.ie. Retrieved 28 November 2018.
7. Layman, Will (16 May 2018). "Kenny Barron Quintet: Concentric Circles". Spectrum Culture. Retrieved 28 November 2018.
8. Pearson, Chris (11 May 2018). "Jazz review: Eddie Henderson: Be Cool/ Kenny Barron Quintet: Concentric Circles". The Times. Retrieved 28 November 2018.
9. "Tom Hull: Grade List: Kenny Barron". Tom Hull. Retrieved 10 July 2020.
10. Black, Keith (17 May 2018). "May 2018: Reviews of this week's CD releases". Winnipeg Free Press. Retrieved 24 September 2020.
11. "Kenny Barron Quintet – Concentric Circles". Discogs. Retrieved 28 November 2018.
12. "CONCENTRIC CIRCLES (2018)". Blue Note. Retrieved 28 November 2018.
13. Conrad, Thomas (25 July 2018). "Kenny Barron Quintet: Concentric Circles (Blue Note)". JazzTimes. Retrieved 29 November 2018.
14. "Kenny Barron to Release Blue Note Debut "Concentric Circles" on May 4". Keyboard. 13 April 2018. Retrieved 29 November 2018.

External links

• Official website