I’ve actually been to Asheville, North Carolina – even if it was a brief day trip two years ago. It’s one thing to listen to music from a place, but it’s a treat to listen to music from the place especially once you’ve actually visited the place and have a bit of the vibe in your head.
This is how I felt when I checked out this new release from Adam Rose. Adam (now based in Asheville, after growing up in Philadelphia, and then spending time in New York City and Durham, North Carolina) managed to assemble this fine lineup of musicians for a live recording documenting his musical explorations. There is definitely a unified feel to the album which clocks just over 50 minutes with the sounds of Adam Rose and Mountain Jazz Quartet.
The record opens with Sailing On the Potomac which has a nice upbeat flowing syncopated feel as Adam takes a solo that combines lyrical lines, faster virtuosic ideas and pentatonic flows and feel good vibes. There’s a lot of Adam’s melodic sensibility captured here and for us to savor before we hear Taylor Pierson’s piano solo. Taylor’s solo is shorter but provides a nice contrast before we hear the main theme again.
Going into a familiar standard, the band’s take on Ray Henderson’s Bye Bye Blackbird begins with a kind of Wes Montgomery inspired chord melody (with touches of sweep picking and Joe Pass-isms) before the band comes in. Very tasteful stuff and classic vibes! Adam keeps the chord melody sound going by still playing chords and double stops even over the band. This is interesting as usually guitarists tend to switch into single note melodies when the band comes in. Instead we hear that when his improvised solo come into view. Adam has a nice mix of jazz blues ideas, bebop ideas and even more old school chord melody sounds. I particularly like his double time line and faster ideas that he sneaks in every once in a while. Taylor again takes the second solo taking his time with blues ideas and the classic line cliche idea before continuing with restrained and rhythmic bluesy phrases. He also surprised me later with more modern chordal ideas before going back to a nice ending in his solo. Steve LaSpina’s first solo on the record is a cool one going through the changes beautifully. The trades at the end give us a good jazzy close to the performance before the theme comes back in. Closing the song, the theme is now in single notes and is refreshing as a contrast. As the longest track, this performance truly defines the group’s personality.
With Fog Valley Sunrise, the drums and piano set the vibe with has a bit of that Brad Mehldau flavor before the theme comes in on guitar. Piano solo appears first this time gradually building up the drama, supported by the band. The guitar solo comes in strong in a lyrical manner and carrying the mood of the piece all the way until the theme returns. Thus far in the record, this is my fave piece so far.
Coming up with a funky groove, Haywood Commons brings a different beat to the album. The keyboard solo is particularly tasty with Taylor really bringing the coolest lines before closing with some nice chords.
Double Entendre takes us into Brazilian territory but with that late 70s and 80s kind of ECM harmonies mixed with Jim Hall phrasing sensibility and Rosenwinkel tones in Adam’s solo. Taylor takes another brilliant solo in this tune as well, and Steve LaSpina has his say with confidence in his improvised solo.
Besides the fun wordplay in the title of the next piece, Little Ms. Understanding – this composition is another fine piece that showcases Adam’s writing and soloing.
The next piece is Theresa’s Journey, a song that brings a more chill tone to the record, but still with the blues underlying the piece.
Finally we have The Turnaround, a blues by Ornette Coleman which is an interesting choice to end the record giving a chance for all the players to stretch out on a familiar blues environment and have some fun.
All in all, this record is a fine exciting release that gives us a chance to discover both Adam Rose’s writing and playing. The band is well recorded, and even though I can tell it’s a more recent modern recording, the playing and overall sound still pays respect to the influences it’s coming from. Personally I find it always a challenge when a band is deciding what covers to add to a live set recording so even after listening to the album, I’m not 100% sure of whether Bye Bye Blackbird and Turnaround fit that well in the tracklist. Still, it is a wise choice to have these so that listeners have somewhat of an aural framework of how their playing sits with the past.
Rating: 4/5
You can stream the album here on YouTube Music, Spotify and Apple Music.
The release is also available as a download and CD on his bandcamp page here: https://adamrose2.bandcamp.com/album/holler-serenade
I received a complimentary copy of this album courtesy of Liam of Jazzfuel. Thank you for the CD.
[About Adam Rose]
Adam learned to play guitar and sing in Quaker meetings held in the woods by the Chesapeake Bay. He continued playing in rock bands and then jazz groups throughout Philadelphia.
As a teenager, Adam studied jazz with Lovett Hines at the Philadelphia Clef Club and performed in venerable Philadelphia jazz clubs including Zanzibar Blue, Chris’s Cafe and Ortliebs. After studying privately with Jimmy Bruno he accepted a promising artist scholarship and enrolled at the University of the Arts.
Adam’s musical pursuits took him further to NYC where he performed in notable jazz and rock venues including Smalls, Cleopatras Needle, and Pianos while pursuing Jazz studies at New School University.
After graduating Adam worked in recording studios throughout LA and NYC as a multi instrumentalist, engineer and composer and maintained a busy teaching and performance schedule.
Upon returning home to Philadelphia, Adam set up a private teaching studio and began studying classical guitar. He joined the Philadelphia Classical Guitar Society and performed Bach’s Chaconne in D minor from memory at the members concert. He auditioned for Jason Vieux and David Starobin at the Curtis Institute and was named first alternate.
His instrumental and electronic compositions have appeared in films and television. As a teacher Adam has taught thousands of guitar lessons.
In 2018 Adam moved to Durham, North Carolina and began performing in jazz, country and bluegrass circles. He accepted a position as a Graduate Assistant at NCCU and earned a Masters degree in composition and arranging.
His 2022 recording project, “Vibes + Tribes” consists of original compositions and jazz standards. It represents the culmination of his diverse influences in an improvisational setting with musicians that he has formed close bonds with in the Durham jazz community.
In Fall 2022 Adam relocated to Asheville, NC where he immersed himself in the Jazz and Americana scenes. He’s honed his craft by playing 250 gigs a year (with a brief interlude for Hurricane Helene). Expanding his repertoire, playing in Django Reinhardt inspired groups, performing for swing dances, and touring through Nashville has enabled him to embrace the busy and adaptable lifestyle of a working musician. In his free time, he continues to study the works of the legendary jazz masters and the timeless fundamentals of harmony.
His second instrumental Jazz album, Holler Serenade, featuring 6 new compositions, is scheduled for release in Summer 2026.
Find out more about Adam here: https://adamrosemusician.com/
[Submissions for Review Consideration]
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