After Mask

Drummer/composer Jeff 'Tain' Watts met his own adversity during the pandemic, but he also became aware of changing attitudes and ways of addressing them that were born from the pandemic's results. Watts's new recording, After Mask, reflects on the events and feelings that have shaped the post Covid 19 landscape but with an attitude of gratitude, reconciliation, and healing. The Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania born and bred Watts has become the standard bearer of modern drumming over his four-decade career. Well known for his early affiliation with Wynton and Branford Marsalis, Watts became one of jazz's most celebrated timekeepers, as a sideman and a leader. His new recording finds him back on Sunnyside Records, where Watts released his debut album as a leader, Megawatts, in 1991. Watts's tremendous career has led him to eight Grammy awards, the last two with Terence Blanchard and the Metropolitan Opera. When the 2020 pandemic paused the music economy, Watts found respite in composing, accumulating a large amount of new music during this period. He found inspiration in everything that he witnessed during that time, though mainly from tragedy, including the losses of family, friends, and inspirations to the January 6th Insurrection and the assassination of George Floyd in Minneapolis. The program on After Mask may seem to come from a dire place. But Watts hopes to inspire and reach some sort of attainment of peace through the music, especially in his heartfelt tributes where Watts celebrates the lost and shows his gratefulness for the energy he received from them. To aid him in his task, Watts recruited most of his first touring ensemble, featuring bassist James Genus, guitarist Paul Bollenback, and tenor player Ravi Coltrane. He also introduces recent collaborator James Francies to the band along with harmonica wizard, Gregoire Maret. The recording showcases two larger pieces that were supported by Chamber Music America that feature vocal support. 'Sage' is a part of a longer work celebrating Watts's hometown and features the soulful vocalist, Bernard Fowler. The centerpiece of After Mask is 'Big Floyd and The Tipping Point,' a poignant suite that utilizes a heartrending vocal performance by the brilliant actor and activist, Wendell Pierce, Watts's former roommate and longtime, dear friend. The program begins with 'The Newark Flash,' a piece that Watts wrote to memorialize the late, great Wayne Shorter. The bouncy piece is built on a segment from Shorter's solo on his original recording of 'Pinocchio' from Miles Davis's Nefertiti album, captures the spirit of Shorter's energetic 1960s period. 'Sage' is inspired by the character Aunt Ester played by Phylicia Rashad in August Wilson's play, Gem of The Ocean, and is a salute to the elders and their wisdom. Fowler's yearning vocals add a soulful lilt alongside Maret's wistful harmonica tones. '7-11 (social, yet distant)' is a rhythmically playful tune played in 7 and 11 time signatures and alluding to social distancing. The poignant 'Big Floyd and The Tipping Point' is a suite in four parts that features the haunting voice of Wendell Pierce, who narrates the last moments and hypothetical thoughts of the murdered Floyd. 'Mama' dramatically introduces the theme while Pierce captures Floyd's pain, while 'Gianna Dance' paints a portrait of Floyd's daughter, whose resilience has captured the public's heart. Floyd was a member of Houston hip-hop legend DJ Screw's Screwed Up Click. Floyd's legacy and voice are celebrated with an excerpt of Screw's 'Sittin' on Top of The World' and Watts's 'Taming of the Screw,' a blues drenched manifesto with words by improvised by Pierce. The suite concludes with 'Just Us / Mama (Reprise),' a history lesson with a beat, including words by Watts. Jeff 'Tain' Watts presents a thought-provoking program of music on After Mask. Though there was much heartbreak, Watts hopes that beauty and love to emerge from the lessons learned during the pandemic.

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