RGG - One (2011) by Adam Baruch

RGG 

Przemyslaw Raminiak (piano)
Maciej Garbowski (bass)
Krysztof Gradziuk (drums)

One (Fonografika, 2012)

This is the 5th album by the excellent Polish Jazz piano trio RGG, which comprises of pianist Przemyslaw Raminiak, bassist Maciej Garbowski and drummer Krzysztof Gradziuk. Its release marks the trio's tenth anniversary and adds a new direction to the remarkable body of music already recorded by the trio. In contrast to its predecessor, that included only spontaneously improvised music, most of the music on this album is composed, either by the trio members or other well known Jazz composers like Carla Bley and Richie Beirach. Of the thirteen compositions presented here only two are free improvisations, which is unusual for them. 

All three RGG members are brilliant instrumentalists, but their performances together clearly create an outcome much bigger than the sum of its parts. The level of interplay, cooperation, mutual respect and understanding is truly phenomenal and the resulting music is able to move emotional mountains. To an attentive listener it is quite clear that even when they play relatively close to the original composition, RGG members display a high level of spontaneity, which is present only within the best piano trios in the world, like that of Keith Jarrett, Gary Peacock and Jack DeJohnette. Another rare quality of RGG is the active involvement of the bass player and drummer in the process of music creation. This is definitely not a pianist with a rhythm section, but an organic three-headed body making music together. 

This album can be a great service to the group as an introduction to their universe; surely anybody listening to it will want to explore their music further. People familiar with the Polish Jazz scene will immediately make the inevitable comparison between RGG and the "other" great Polish piano trio: Simple Acoustic Trio (or Marcin Wasilewski Trio). Comparisons of this sort are futile and have absolutely no sense, as both these trios play great music, each differently from the other. RGG are definitely closer to the Free / Improvised spirit of the music whereas Wasilewski's trio is more disciplined and conventional, but both are examples of human talent and ingenuity of the highest ranking, which gives us all the immense pleasure of music. 

It's worth to mention that the album was recorded at the Studio Tokarnia, the best sound studio in Poland, and engineered by the studio's owner (and a gifted musician himself) Jan Smoczynski, which explains the incredible sound quality of this album. This is an absolute must to every Jazz piano trio connoisseur and of course anybody with a right pair of ears to appreciate great music. Not to be missed under any circumstances!

Tracklist:
01 One 6:18
02 Around Again 3:06
03 Bell 3:42
04 Spring Walk 6:03
05 Elm 7:51
06 From The Other Hand 5:17
07 Almost Blues 2:38
08 The Truth 4:56
09 Out Of A Row 4:45
10 C.T. 2:00
11 Stop And Think 7:41
12 When My Anger Starts To Cry 4:29
13 On The Way To Road 11 6:11

By Adam Baruch
http://www.adambaruch.com/