Those searching for the nostalgia of Fats Waller’s recordings won’t find it in pianist Jason Moran’s ninth album on Blue Note, All Rise: A Joyful Elegy for Fats Waller. Instead, the set incorporates Moran touchstones like R&B, hip-hop and funk into a loose tribute-cum-dance-party that cleverly modernizes the late jazz legend’s tunes.
Moran surrounds himself with collaborators equally skilled at adaptation: bassist-singer Meshell Ndegeocello co-produces with Blue Note head Don Was, whose studio work spans Bob Dylan to John Mayer, and Bob Power (D’Angelo, A Tribe Called Quest, The Roots) mixes. With its asymmetrical, down-pitched sample, opener “Put Your Hands on It” sets the intention from the start: This isn’t a covers album; it’s meant to bring Waller into 2014. “Jitterbug Waltz” has always been too slow to actually waltz to, and Moran lays back just enough to make the song a sultry slow jam. “Yacht Club Swing” takes a challenging Latin verve to the extremes, resulting in the LP’s most danceable cut.
“Sheik of Araby/I Found a New Baby (Medley)” is the strongest link between Waller’s stride style and that of Moran. The former’s laconic swing was one of considerable ease, but Moran’s update is noticeably more technical. That impressive skill is almost a detriment on “Handful of Keys,” where Moran’s inversions of the theme seem odd until he dives into brilliant piano runs that end in a beautifully disorienting harmonic cloud. If anything, this album proves how transmutable Waller’s music is – these standards can go in any direction. He deserves to be taken to these new heights.
-Dale Eisinger