Stephane Wrembel: Terre Des Hommes, part 4

From: Monty

To: Scott and Brian

Heh heh. Call me crazy, but I’m getting the feeling that Scott doesn’t care too much for this record. I don’t hate it as much as I hate The Mall at Short Hills, but I have not grown to like it much.

Brian, comparing Terre Des Hommes to the other CDs I mentioned (which are, namely, Introducing Stephane Wrembel and Barbes-Brooklyn) in terms of whether he has a recognizable sound is a little tough for me. I haven't had time to digest them all to a point where I can say if he does or doesn’t. Keep in mind that just a few short weeks ago I didn’t even know this guy existed. To use one of your own examples, I’m not sure I could have readily picked out Miles Davis from the rest of the pack less than a month after I first heard him. Especially if the first couple records I heard had been, for example, Miles Ahead and Tutu.

I would normally agree that there is an upside to the non-Django-ness of the recording, but what was so enjoyable about the show how much Wrembel & Co. were able to put their mark on the Hot Club-style numbers they performed, making their own statement about the music rather than just recreating it. Clearly I was taken by it enough to fork over for the disc.

Lastly, of course there is something to the recorded jazz vs. live jazz discussion, and all else being equal I generally do favor live. But my reaction to this album in relation to the show was not about that. It was more akin to the idea of, say, having discovered the Beatles at a live performance of Please Please Me, and coming home with the Sgt. Pepper’s CD. I just wasn’t prepared for the differences in style, sensibility, etc. And moreover, while I loved the material he played at the show, I don’t care much at all for the distinctly different material on the record.

So in the final analysis, my problem here is twofold: I’m disappointed that the record isn’t what I expected it to be, and I also don’t care much for what it actually is.