Artist: Frank Harrison

Date of Release:

Catalogue no: SRCD15-2

Label: Basho Records

Price: £7.50

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Appearances by

Stephen Keogh

This Spring Frank Harrison launches his debut album FIRST LIGHT on Basho Records. Frank displays an extraordinarily mature musicality for his age. The music is original, thoughtful, delicate and imbued with texture and colour. It's very lack of over-exuberance and freneticism is a refreshing change. This is thought–provoking and intense.

Reviews

05/05/2006 John Fordham, The Guardian 3 stars

Harrison is most familiar as Gilad Atzmon's pianist, and the 2006 Atzmon group's diversion toward keyboard electronics might suggest a hint of that on Harrison's personal debut. But this is an acoustic-trio set in Brad Mehldau territory, and the scalding pace and motivic zigzagging of What Is This Thing Called Love? is a reminder both of how much spark remains in this familiar jazz-ensemble format, and how many good examples of it there are in the UK.
Harrison is accompanied by the bassist they call Scotland's Dave Holland - Aidan O'Donnell - and by that sensitive small-group drummer Stephen Keogh. The pianist's quiet, rippling originals take five tracks; there are three standards, and a brooding account of the Spartacus theme with O'Donnell in conversational support. Harrison's swaying ballad Jinni is the most openly songlike of his own pieces (Bill Evans-like in its accelerating development), but - as with Mehldau - the most elliptical, preoccupied overtures develop unexpected fireworks. A promising start.

06/04/2006 Peter Bevan, Northern Echo

Pianist Frank Harrison will be familiar from Gilad Atzmon’s groups but this debut album presents him in a new light. He’s accompanied by bass player Aidan O’Donnell and drummer Stephen Keogh but it’s Harrison who stands out on a session which is as delicate and expressive as anything else I’ve heard, helped by a crystal clear recording. It’s simply beautiful.