Athens Greece Archive

Mark Murphy, Live In Athens, Greece – Harbinger

by Audiophile Audition | Jun 15, 2016 | Jazz CD Reviews

Mark Murphy, Live In Athens, Greece – Harbinger HCD 3202 A singer of no-nonsense acumen. (Mark Murphy – vocals; Spiros Exaras – electric guitar; Thomas Rueckert – piano; Alex Drakos – drums; George Georgiadis – acoustic bass) When Mark Murphy died on October 22, 2015, at age 83, jazz lost one of the most interesting and innovative interpreters of vocal jazz. Unafraid to take chances, Murphy put his dynamic baritone voice to good effect as he ranged over an eclectic array of material that covered the spectrum from ballads to bebop. In this new release taken from a live performance in Greece in April 2008, the Murphy effect is in full flower as he dives and swoops over some well-known numbers that nevertheless still sound fresh. Beginning with “My Funny Valentine” Murphy stakes out his turf as he shows his vocal command by driving the tune through an interpretation that eschews that traditional with an up-tempo rendition that he scats in part with undiminished glee. That Murphy was an unabashed admirer of Miles Davis was well-known and the program presented at this live session was replete was Davis compositions or associated tunes starting with “All Blues”. With words by Oscar […]