Andrew Wilcox – Dear Mr. Hill (ENG review)

DL Media Music – Street Date, August 16th, 2024
Jazz
Andrew Wilcox – Dear Mr. Hill (ENG review)

Andrew Wilcox is an interesting composer and pianist who, like his European colleagues, finds his source in classical music to compose his jazz. The title of “Dear Mr. Hill,” the engaging debut album by the gifted, Hartford-based pianist and composer Andrew Wilcox, is addressed to the legendary Andrew Hill. But the album as a whole, a spirited mix of original compositions and keenly chosen standards, is a message from Wilcox to the many mentors and influences that have guided him along his path.

However, one might regret a lack of surprise on this album where everything is beautiful, clean, and pleasant to listen to. In this formality, one can only listen without being moved and merely admire the virtuosity of this pianist. Wilcox was born in Massachusetts and began taking piano lessons at the age of four. He grew up with a mix of classical music, grunge, and classic rock at home, discovering jazz only by playing the trombone in the school band. His destiny was sealed when he first heard Herbie Hancock’s “Takin’ Off.” He became the latest in a long line of piano students nurtured by the legend of local educator Dick Odgren and quickly fell under the spell of his two main influences: Hill and McCoy Tyner.

Even down to the scales used, everything sounds a bit the same. As far as jazz albums go, I’m left somewhat unsatisfied. This year, particularly, we have an immense choice of artists who take risks in their proposals with a certain talent. Here, one can almost always predict note for note what will come next, which is quite boring in the end. Wilcox is typically the kind of artist one might enjoy seeing in concert, without necessarily imagining him making an album. I listened to this album several times without feeling anything, which is rare, but it happens. Yet, the initial concept was interesting on paper.

“Introduced by the thunderclap of Israel’s mallets, the austere but tender piece ‘Mary’ is dedicated to a close family friend of Wilcox, whom he considers as close as his own parents. ‘My family dined weekly with this second family during my childhood,’ he explains. ‘Everyone around the table was about the age of my grandparents, but we were all close. Just after finishing writing this piece, I received a call from my father telling me that Mary had just died of cancer. The timing told me that this song was for her, and I think of her every time I play it.'”

Wilcox’s last original composition, “Self-Doubt,” draws inspiration from within, delving deeply into the questions and uncertainties that confront us all in the darkest corners of our minds. The album is rounded out by a pair of familiar standards: a reharmonized version of “Stella by Starlight” and “Old Devil Moon.”

I remain convinced that this composer and pianist has many resources and deserves to break new ground to explore other horizons successfully. That’s why I still give this album four stars. It is flawless in interpretation and easy to listen to, with hopes for more inventive albums in the future. For it is difficult for me to listen to albums that remind me of my conservatory music lessons.

Thierry De Clemensat
USA correspondent – Paris-Move and ABS magazine
Editor in chief Bayou Blue Radio, Bayou Blue News

PARIS-MOVE, July 24th 2024

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