REVIEWS FOR "Travis Shook Plays Kurt Weill" "...one of the hippest, driest, most elliptical versions of "Mack the Knife" on record." - JazzTimes Magazine "This is an ambitious disk.... Travis Shook shows he is not afraid to try different things with some highly worked material." - Cadence Magazine Personnel: Travis Shook - piano Jennifer Vincent - bass Jaz Sawyer - drums Veronica Nunn - vocalist Ron Westray - trombone Kebbi Williams - tenor sax Bryan Carrot - vibraphone ABOUT TRAVIS SHOOK PLAYS KURT WEILL Travis Shook Plays Kurt Weill is a tribute to the famous German composer. Leading his working trio (which also includes Jennifer Vincent on upright bass and Jaz Sawyer on drums) and joined by skillful guests like trombonist Ron Westray and tenor saxophonist Kebbi Williams, Shook puts his stamp on six timeless Weill standards. From "Alabama Song" to "Mack the Knife," Travis Shook Plays Kurt Weill reflects not only the New York City resident's appreciation of Weill's work, but also, his individuality. "As a jazz artist," the 38-year-old Shook explains, "you are always looking for songs that are going to be appropriate vehicles for you - songs you can improvise with. Even a great song may not be an appropriate vehicle; you might be saying, 'This is a great song, although there isn't anything that I can do with it as an improviser.' But there is so much that can be done with Kurt Weill's songs. I picked tunes that I knew would work for me as a jazz improviser and tunes that I knew I could make a personal statement with. My goal was to stay true to the boundaries of Kurt Weill's music but always apply my own feelings." While "My Ship," "Alabama Song," "Mack the Knife" and "September Song" are performed as instrumentals, Shook features his wife, veteran jazz vocalist Veronica Nunn, on the melancholy "Lonely House" and "Lost in the Stars." The latter also employs cellists Maxine Neuman and Melanie A. Yarger, who perform a cello arrangement that Shook wrote at Nunn's recommendation. "'Lost in the Stars' is my favorite thing on the album because of the cello arrangement," Shook notes. "[Pianist] Ahmad Jamal heard that arrangement and thought it was really great." "Alabama Song" is a haunting gem that rock enthusiasts associate with Jim Morrison and the Doors (who recorded the song on their first album in 1967), although it was written 40 years earlier in 1927. Shook's arrangement, with its post-bop aesthetic, is a departure from both rock and theatrical versions of the famous standard. "I knew 'Alabama Song' from the Doors, and I was also familiar with the Broadway version - which is much more off-kilter than even the Doors' version," Shook says. "But I went for a kind of McCoy Tyner-ish arrangement. I put kind of a modal tinge to it." Equally intriguing is Shook's arrangement of Weill's 1928 favorite "Mack the Knife," also known as "Die Moritat vom Mackie Moritat" or "Threepenny Opera." Originally heard in German, the song became known as "Mack the Knife" when Marc Blitzstein wrote the famous English-language lyrics that were recorded by Bobby Darin, Ella Fitzgerald and countless others. But Shook's version is strictly instrumental, and he takes the song in a much moodier direction. In JazzTimes, Thomas Conrad praised Shook for providing "one of the hippest, driest, most elliptical versions of 'Mack the Knife' on record." Shook explains: "Before I recorded 'Mack the Knife,' I read the English lyrics and said to myself, 'He's talking about stabbing a guy. The guy was a thief, murderer, rapist and arsonist. This is Mafioso stuff.' Those lyrics (the original lyrics were cleaned up considerably) were tongue-in-cheek, [but] I wanted to give the song a darker, edgier kind of vibe. I left the melody intact, but I changed the chords. My version is definitely not like any other version I've heard." Shook's desire to bring something personal to Weill's music has not gone unnoticed. Reviewing Travis Shook Plays Kurt Weill in Cadence, Grego Applegate Edwards asserts: "This is an ambitious disk.... Travis Shook shows he is not afraid to try different things with some highly worked material." The front cover of Travis Shook Plays Kurt Weill perfectly captures the spirit of Weill's music. On the cover, Shook is sitting in front of a piano, surrounded by six figurines of German musicians - figurines that actually go back to the 1930s. It's a cover that immediately brings to mind Germany's Weimar Republic, the government that existed in Germany from 1919 to 1933 (before Adolph Hitler and the Nazi Party took control of that country). Weill (who was born in 1900 and died in 1950) was among Germany's most respected composers during the Weimar era, but sadly, Weill (who was Jewish) was forced to flea Germany in 1933 because of the Nazis. Looking at the cover of Travis Shook Plays Kurt Weill, one immediately thinks of German cabaret and theatrical music during the Weimar Republic. ABOUT TRAVIS SHOOK Award-winning pianist Travis Shook is a hard-driving yet melodic post-bop improviser who's come a long way from his beginnings in Oroville, California. In 1993, a 23-year old Shook released a critically acclaimed self-titled debut on Columbia/Sony records co-produced by himself and jazz legend Tony Williams. This album received almost universal critical acclaim, including a 5-star rating by Scott Yanow in All Music Guide, "Best of the Year" in France's Jazz Magazine, and being selected as one of "Tomorrow's Jazz Piano Giants" by Keyboard Magazine. Later, Shook began touring the world as pianist for another jazz legend, Betty Carter. Due to an increasing struggle with alcoholism/addiction, however, his appearance on the jazz scene would become sparse. After a self-imposed break from the music scene, Shook has re-emerged stronger than ever with two new releases, Plays Kurt Weill and Awake. He has also appeared with Eddie Harris, Bunky Green, Reggie Workman, Sonny Simmons, Joe Lovano, Toots Thielemans, Rufus Reid, Chris Botti, Michael Franks, Marian McPartland, Chuck Israels, Ernestine Anderson, Branford Marsalis, Benny Golson and Clifford Jordan. In addition to his extensive performances in the US, Travis has toured much of Europe, Brazil, Australia and Turkey, and his playing has been praised by George Benson, Ahmad Jamal, Michael Brecker and Ornette Coleman. "Man, you're a really good player!" - Ornette Coleman, Alto Saxophonist Reviews for Awake "Shook turns the heat up well beyond the boiling point with pyrotechnical technique and raw energy rarely exhibited by the new breed of pianists." - Greg Yuska, Jazz Improv's New York Jazz Guide "...consistently showcases Travis Shook at his best." - Scott Yanow, All Music Guide '"Fresh and hot seven years out of the oven, Awake is a prime example of the adage 'good things come to those who wait.' " - George Harris, All About Jazz '"A thoroughly enjoyable set of contemporary jazz, Awake captures an exceptional performance by pianist Travis Shook...." - Edward Blanco, AllAboutJazz.com "...Shook is something of a mystery man." - Thomas Conrad, JazzTimes Magazine Reviews for Travis Shook Plays Kurt Weill "...one of the hippest, driest, most elliptical versions of "Mack the Knife" on record." - Thomas Conrad, JazzTimes Magazine "This is an ambitious disk.... Travis Shook shows he is not afraid to try different things with some highly worked material." - Grego Applegate Edwards, Cadence Magazine Reviews for Travis Shook (Columbia Records debut album) Under his appearance of a student with glasses, Shook is a supreme pianist by his maturity, his assurance, his irresistible punch and the electricity that frees itself from his playing." - Par Henri Marchal, Cannes "He has well earned the prize 'Special Discovery' . . . At 22 years, he possesses an extraordinary technique, one can also speak of his knowledge, but especially he frees himself in his playing with an exceptional intensity that he also shows in his own compositions . . . Yes, this Travis Shook is a phenomenon and it is clear that they will be talking about him." - Nord Matin, French Jazz Critic Among the super talented, Travis Shook, who has opened the umbrella, can be an exceptional figure." - Philippe Méziat, Jazz Mag