Gulf Coast Blues & Impressions - A Hurricane Relief Benefit

◎ 葛莱美心灵系钢琴大师，2012年為纪念墨西哥海湾漏油污染事件，发行钢琴独奏公益专辑。 ◎ 深受纽奥良蓝调爵士钢琴家启蒙，尤其是Professor Longhair (Henry Roeland Byrd)、James Booker、Henry Butler、Dr. John、Allen Toussaint和Jon Cleary等，他们也是此辑作品的许多灵感来源。 ◎ George Winston指间流洩出空灵琴韵以及对地球、自然时节的细腻感受，透过音乐传达他的生命观，以及他对人、对自然的深切关怀。 格莱美心灵系钢琴大师George Winston，从小在蒙大拿州优美、自然、干净的环境下成长，他的指间流洩出空灵琴韵以及对地球、自然时节的细腻感受。1980年代，他以四季为概念创作的系列专辑，在全球创下超过百万张的销售佳绩，剔透的琴音抚慰了许多心灵。 继2006年为帮助卡崔娜颶风灾后重建所出的公益专辑《Gulf Coast Blues & Impressions：A Hurricaine Relief Benefit》，George Winston再度为墨西哥海湾漏油污染事件，推出这张保育路易斯安那湿地的钢琴独奏公益专辑，响应由音乐家Tab Benoit在2004年成立的The Voice of the Wetlands公益组织，呼吁大家正视路易斯安那州南边的湿地被破坏而导致的种种环境及气候危机议题。George Winston的演奏风格，深受很多来自纽奥良的伟大蓝调爵士钢琴家的啟发，尤其是Professor Longhair (Henry Roeland Byrd)、James Booker、Henry Butler、Dr. John、Allen Toussaint和Jon Cleary等人的作品，在这张专辑裡，亦有许多作品的灵感，即是来自这些出身纽奥良的知名钢琴家。George Winston透过音乐传达他的生命观，以及他对人、对自然的深切关怀。 by Thom Jurek Folks may think George Winston is a little late on his benefit record for the Gulf Coast and New Orleans. They're wrong. This record will be issued a week after the first anniversary of Hurricane Katrina, and in the middle of hurricane season. The sheer amount of work and money needed to rehab the region is so astronomical it'll never be too late. Winston is donating all of his proceeds to the certain organizations around the region, and the label has pledged its "net profits." These are two different things, but on to the music. The bottom line here is that Winston proves he can shake it on this set. He's not James Booker, whose "Pixie" he covers wonderfully here. Nor is he "Fess" (Professor Longhair), Dr. John (a cover of "Creole Moon" is on this set), or his friend Henry Butler -- whose crib in the Lower Ninth Ward got wiped out by Katrina. But he can play this music, and his own compositions are soulful, direct, and loaded with aural imagery from the Big Easy tradition and that's what counts. His read of "Creole Moon" may not possess the loose, joyous, funky butt swing of Dr. John's ballad, but it does contain plenty, plenty soul; as an interpreter, Winston coaxes some of the more sophisticated compositional aspects of the tune out through the blues. Likewise, "Pixie" is a bit more formal than the fluid jump of Booker's version, but Winston gets the spirit across and kicks it into high blues stride. He composed his own extrapolation of the cut as well, called "Pixie #3 (Gôbajie)" the latter named after his cat. Apparently there will be a "Pixie #4 (Gôbajie)" on a future disc. His blues is very pronounced and strident, perhaps too hard an argument, but it moves nonetheless. The best of the covers is Butler's "The Breaks"; he nails it. His interpretation is different and leans heavily on the left hand, but it's got the funk. His own short ballads and the brief "Stevenson" are lovely in their way, relaxed and engaging simultaneously. "When the Saints Go Marching In" offers the single greatest testament to Winston's technical and soulful abilities, and he gives the tune an extended workout nearly 12-minutes long. His middle register playing is deep blues brined in stride-style boogie-woogie with a gorgeously long intro. The album closes with "Blues for Fess," a New Orleans elegy that comes whispering out of the gate and keeps its quiet dignity, even while caressing the blues. This is perhaps the most engaging Winston album ever, and the single one anyone who's ever been interested in him should own.