Much like the reflection we found with Banda União Black, The Ipanemas or even Paul Anka, there is something of a ‘new’ age that comes with musical experience. Recorded in California, Dwight has gathered some of his colleagues from Build An Ark and The Life Force Trio. But don’t expect Love Is The Answer part 2 as Living Water goes back to Dwight’s life source, jazz.

Dwight has composed lyrics to some jazz classics and his performance doesn’t lower the standard. It must be incredible difficult to do this with anything by John Coltrane, but the opener ‘Wise One’ cracks it and sets the tone for ‘John Coltrane’; God is all indeed. This is a pivotal track. On ‘Footprints’ (Wayne Shorter), Trible sings, scats and adds a little spoken word to a piano lead ‘straight’ jazz number; if Gilles Peterson still had a Vibra Zone, this would be on it.

‘Ishmael’ (Abdullah Ibrahim) is blown straight off the sands of the desert. You want ethnic modal jazz? Get this, the rest of the album are covers of, can you believe, Andy Bey’s ‘Celestial Blues’, ‘Little Sunflower’ (Freddie Hubbard), Africa (Coltrane/Abbey Lincoln)!

In lesser hands that spells absolute annihilation but not here. Pre-compilation CD era, Al Jarreau’s ‘Little Sunflower’ was on my wants list for absolutely ages but now, Dwight’s version is best.

‘Africa’ contains Kamau Daaood’s poem of hope, ‘The Living Waters’ which would be my favourite track if it were not for ‘John Coltrane’ and an extra-special performance by Mr. Trible on a version of ‘Wild Is The Wind’.

The album finishes with the track ‘Peace’, which puts us in a celestial reflective mood and one day we may perhaps attain this goal.

You can’t pick out any musicians here, as it’s all so excellent. Think classic Blue Note/Prestige/Impulse! sessions and you get the idea whilst Dwight follows in the vocal steps of Andy Bey, Leon Thomas, Mark Murphy, Jon Lucien (or even Linda Jones) as he takes us to the next incarnation of jazz-cancao.

So a jazz album for the folks that love jazz albums, great cover and sleeve notes by Cosmic Sounds fan Kevin Le Gendre (Jazzwise/Echoes/).

With the added prospect of Dwight and a live band coming to Europe later this year, what more could you ask for?

Reviewed: Dwight Trible — Living Water (Ninja Tunes) Cat. No. Release Date: 12th June 2006 (Re-issue of USA only release in 2004)
Credits: Bass — Donnell Lambert (tracks: 4, 6, 7) , Trevor Ware (tracks: 1 to 3, 5, 7, 8) Drums — Daniel Bejarano (tracks: 1 to 8) Mixed By — Eric Fahlborg Piano — John Rangel (tracks: 1, 3, 7, 8) Piano, Synthesizer — Bobby West (tracks: 4 to 6) Producer, Arranged By, Vocals — Dwight Trible
Notes: Recorded At Jazz Bakery, Culver City, CA, Fahlborg Studio, Manhattan Beachm CA, Mad Hatter Studio, LA
Tracklisting:
1. Wise One (4:33) Flute — Joshua Spieglman Percussion — Dwight Trible
2. John Coltrane (9:17) Percussion — Adam Rudolph Piano — Harold Land, Jr.
3. Ishmael (6:49) Backing Vocals — Waberi Saxophone [Soprano] — Charles Owens
4. Footprints (6:38) Backing Vocals — Dexter Story , Harold Burr Percussion — Dwight Trible
5. Celestial Blues (7:57) Trumpet — Jon Williams (4)
6. Little Sunflower (8:01) Congas — Adrian Jefferson Flute — Cyril Carr Percussion, Vibraphone — John Magnusson
7. Africa (6:40) Backing Vocals — Nikia Bilingslea Congas — Derf Reklaw Flute [Bamboo] — Joshua Spieglman Percussion — Munyungo Jackson Synthesizer — Dwight Trible Voice — Kamau Daaood Voice [African Verse], Backing Vocals — Blay Ambolley
8. Wild Is The WInd (5:43) Percussion — Munyungo Jackson
9. Peace (2:37)

Links:
www.ninjatune.net
Living Waters by Rex Butters at AllAboutJazz
Los Angeles City Beat: Gilles Peterson
The Incredible Sound of Gilles Peterson inc. Little Sunflower — Freddie Hubbard at Amazon
The Language of Saxophones: Selected Poems of Kamu Daaood at Powells
Gilles Peterson, Jazz FM, Saturdays 3-4 p.m — Vibra Zone before his Gulf War I sacking.