Widening Circles

"This album is a triumph, impossible not to like. There is an engaging directness and vitality in McAlls work, at once sophisticated yet guileless. His bright, chunky tunes are remarkably buoyant, at times romantic, instantly hummable. McAlls brilliance is every- where, drawing beautiful voicings out of the horns and his own piano: his sextet sounds orchestral." -The Australian Financial Review "Rather than tentatively nibbling at the Big Apple, pianist Barney McAll has bitten into the core. Dancing around all these fine players is McAlls piano, always an enlivening influ-ence, imbued with authority and great logic, as compelling as a finely honed short story". -The Sydney Morning Herald "This album reveals a mature artist in his prime. Confident, inventive and involving as his own solos are, perhaps the most impressive aspect of this set is McAlls writing. His comp- ositions combine memorable melodies and rhythmic motifs, but best of all is his use of harmony: some of his note combinations for frontline are exquisite - ****1/2 -Rhythms Magazine "As a pianist his attack is certainly engaging. But the biggest strengths here are those compositional skills and arrangements and carefully layered harmonies throughout. He gives plenty of space for his crew to stretch out, providing color, which is appropriate given Herrings intensity levels and Harpers swirling attack". -The Age "(McAll's) ability to craft memorable themes is matched by a feel for the atmospheric..Now established on the intensely competitive New York jazz scene, he plays here with some of the citys leading musicians. The music is utterly contemporary, McAll demonstrating throughout that he is a talented composer as well as gifted keyboardist" - Rolling Stone Magazine McAll leads this band with apparent ease in this great release, holding up superbly built tunes for these musicians and always having great ideas to expand on when it is his time to solo. McAll puts attention on every detail and his own widening circles of listeners will grow with this great release. - Mixdown Magazine " The revelation of the evening is pianist Barney McAll.Playing beneath the liquid passages of Redman, McAll carefully kneaded clusters of notes from his hands that I found devastating. He explored ideas with a dramatic flourish that had the audience in raptures" -Drum Media