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Jazztimes      September 2003 

Warren Bernhardt’s eighth release for DMP, Amelia’s Song, is further proof that there aint’ no justice.  Why, at 65, Bernhardt is still not a household name is unfathomable.  This session, with Jay Anderson on acoustic bass and Peter Erskine on drums, is as good as it gets, musically and technically: no gobos, no headphones, no second takes, absolutely no boring moments.  The longest track is the title tune, a Bernhardt original, which he hints was channeled through him by his maternal grandma, Amelia.  (Long story, as tender as the tune.)
Most of the rest are standards, revealing Bernhardt’s fertile harmonic thinking, typified by whole stretches of “Polka Dots and Moonbeams” where each separate note is supported by a reharmonized chord.  “Boilermaker” and Wayne Shorter’s “E.S.P.” provide plenty of solo room for Erskine, but he shows better percussive skills on “Desafinado.”  Fortunately, the amazing Anderson solos on every track.  “Boilermaker” lists all three as composers.  It seems to evolve freely from a G pedal into a medium-tempo funky swinger.  On the whole, slow tempos dominate the session.  Bernhardt’s lyrical side is his best, as in “Prelude to a Kiss.” But when the spirit moves him, as it does on “I Hear a Rhapsody.” He can overwhelm you with a torrent of single-note bop flurries. 

AMELIA’S SONG

Warren Bernhardt, a trio featuring Jay Anderson & Peter Erskine, 

DMP  SACD-19,   CD-535 

Warren Bernhardt is probably the most underrated jazz pianist around today.  As co-leader of Steps Ahead, pianist with Steely Dan and Art Garfunkel, it is unfortunate that Warren has not had the time to bring his own music to a wider audience.

Having worked with Bill Evans before Bill’s death, Warren has carried on that special jazz piano improvisation style that Bill was known best for.

Nine tunes, all first takes with only one edit in the entire album, along with a set up using no gobos, headphones or isolation make this a most realistic, un-hyped natural piano trio recording.  If you think you would like to hear a great trio playing in your listening room, this is about as close as it gets.

AMELIA’S SONG was recorded in pure DSD (Direct Stream Digital) during the original session at Ambient Recording in Stamford CT.  This multichannel SACD places the listener in the venue where this great performance went down like no other piano trio recording.

Available in both multichannel SACD and standard CD.