Kenny Barron at the Piano
| Kenny Barron at the Piano | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | 1982 | |||
| Recorded | February 13, 1981 | |||
| Studios | RCA Studios, Studio C, NYC | |||
| Genre | Jazz | |||
| Length | 50:51 | |||
| Labels | Xanadu 188 | |||
| Producer | Don Schlitten | |||
| Kenny Barron chronology | ||||
| ||||
Kenny Barron at the Piano is a solo album by American jazz pianist Kenny Barron, recorded in early 1981 and released on the Xanadu label.[1][2][3][4][5] This was Barron's first solo album and was followed by Spiral (1982), Live at Maybeck Recital Hall, Volume Ten (1990), and The Source (2023).
Recording and release
Kenny Barron at the Piano was recorded on a 9-foot Steinway also used for recordings by classical pianists such as Artur Rubinstein and Van Cliburn.[6] The program includes four originals (including a bonus track), two compositions by Thelonious Monk, one by Billy Strayhorn, and the widely covered jazz standard "Body and Soul".
The recording was reissued on CD in 2015 by Elemental Music, with one bonus track from the original session, as part of the Xanadu Master Edition.[7]
Reception
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   [8] |
| Jazzwise | [9] |
| The Penguin Guide to Jazz |  [10] |
In his review on AllMusic, Robert Taylor notes: "The set is a fine mix of standards and originals. ... Along with the duets he recorded with Stan Getz, this stands as the high-water mark in his stellar recording career."[8] In JazzTimes, Philip Booth wrote: "At the Piano, Kenny Barron’s debut solo album, recorded in 1981 on a nine-foot Steinway in the same New York studio that was home to high-end classical players, offers an up-close snapshot of the virtuosity, broadly encompassing style and wide-ranging repertoire that would come to define his storied career."[11]
Track listing
All compositions by Kenny Barron except where noted.
- "Bud-Like" – 6:02
- "The Star-Crossed Lovers" (Billy Strayhorn, Duke Ellington) – 8:38
- "Misterioso" (Thelonious Monk) – 7:45
- "Calypso" – 4:02
- "Body and Soul" (Johnny Green, Edward Heyman, Robert Sour, Frank Eyton) – 6:58
- "Enchanted Flower" – 6:15
- "Rhythm-a-Ning" (Monk) – 5:43
- " Wazuri Blues" – 4:39 Bonus track on CD reissue
Personnel
References
- ↑ Xanadu Records LP discography accessed January 9, 2017.
- ↑ Kenny Barron Catalog accessed January 9, 2017.
- ↑ Kenny Barron: recordings accessed January 9, 2017.
- ↑ Enciclopedia del Jazz: Kenny Barron accessed January 9, 2017
- ↑ Fitzgerald, M. Kenny Barron Discography, accessed January 20, 2019.
- ↑ Schlitten, Don. Liner notes, Kenny Barron at the Piano, Xanadu Records, 1981.
- ↑ "Elemental Music to Reissue 25 Albums Originally on Xanadu Label". JazzTimes.com, Updated April 25, 2019, Accessed May 17, 2025.
- 1 2 Taylor, Robert. Kenny Barron – At the Piano: Review at AllMusic. Retrieved January 9, 2017.
- ↑ Pristley, Brian (February 2016). "Review Search". Jazzwise. Retrieved November 18, 2020.
- ↑ Cook, Richard; Morton, Brian (2008). The Penguin Guide to Jazz Recordings (9th ed.). Penguin. p. 86. ISBN 978-0-141-03401-0.
- ↑ Booth, Philip, "Kenny Barron: At the Piano" (review), JazzTimes, February 22, 2016.
