| Jazz |
By the luck of the draw, this happens to be the first of Benjie Porecki’s records to land in our hands, though it is by no means his debut. The keyboardist and composer has already released five other albums, each staking its claim in a career that has quietly threaded itself through the fabric of American music. And from the opening bars, one recognizes in him that rare ability to craft stories, to build settings alive with texture and mood, places that radiate both charm and poetry. That gift, of course, owes much to the company he has kept over the years: Carlos Santana, Buddy Guy, Pieces of a Dream, Maysa, Chaka Khan, Patti LaBelle, Kirk Whalum, Tom Scott, Nnenna Freelon, Angie Stone, the roll call goes on. Each an artist with a world distinctly their own, and yet Porecki has found his way into all of them, absorbing and reflecting their individuality.
What emerges here is a portrait of Porecki himself. One can almost hear lyrics wanting to attach themselves to each of the songs, most of them his own compositions, save for the tender “Just When I Need You” (Mercury/Flack) and the closing track, Hall & Oates’s classic “She’s Gone.” That makes sense. Porecki is, above all, a melodist. His music draws freely from funk, soul, pop, rock, and beyond, yet always with a voice unmistakably his own.
Even the album’s cover, a cat gazing outward through nylon curtains, seems to frame the listening experience. Like the feline, we too are perched on the windowsill, peering into the shifting landscapes Porecki conjures. What feels at first like a straightforwardly enjoyable record soon reveals itself to be supported by intricate, finely tuned arrangements, the kind of invisible architecture that only decades of experience can provide.
Though his career has so often been defined by playing alongside others, Porecki’s solo work offers a more intimate glimpse into his artistic vision. Across his catalog one can trace the wellspring of his inspirations, the evolution of his craft. It becomes difficult not to draw comparisons, Michel Legrand comes to mind, though Porecki often proves the more daring, the more inventive. His melodic sensibility, rooted in a deep understanding of his art, animates pieces like “Sonora,” which nods in equal measure to Duke Ellington and Erik Satie, its layers unfolding one by one, track by track. Each album marks another step in that ongoing journey, each a chapter in a longer narrative of growth.
There is, too, something of the magician in Porecki. He has an ear for which instrument, be it the Hammond B3 or the piano—will shimmer most vividly in a given piece, a precision that gives his music a density, a consciousness of sound, of the exact weight and placement of each note in time and space.
The result is a poetry of resonance, a music that lives and breathes. One can almost picture him hunched over a notebook, scribbling staves and notes with quiet fervor. And when the music comes alive, it does not merely play—it is lived, it is dreamed, and ultimately, it is savored. Like a fine wine shared among friends, it lingers, grows more complex with time, and leaves you wanting another pour.
Thierry De Clemensat
Member at Jazz Journalists Association
USA correspondent for Paris-Move and ABS magazine
Editor in chief – Bayou Blue Radio, Bayou Blue News
PARIS-MOVE, September 2nd 2025
Follow PARIS-MOVE on X
::::::::::::::::::::::::
Musicians :
Benjie Porecki: piano, organ, pads
Mark Prince: drums
Michael Bowie: bass
Track Listing :
Passage Of Time
Just When I Needed You
Wise Decisions
Home At Last
Sonora
All That Matters
Intermezzo
Bring It On Home
Letting Go
She’s Gone