Jazz guitarist John Abercrombie, who has been closely associated with the Munich-based label ECM since 1974, presents his second quartet album. Joining him are pianist Marc Copland and his trusted rhythm section partners Drew Gress and Joey Baron. The Financial Times, reviewing the previous album "39 Steps" (2013), noted: "The focus is on the subtle tensions, the flowing lyricism, and the interplay between Abercrombie's warm, precisely articulated guitar playing and Copland's piano artistry... supported by bassist Gress and drummer Baron as equally smooth and powerful accompanists." These characteristic qualities of lyrical melodic lines and harmonic-rhythmic finesse also define the new work "Up and Coming," which places even greater emphasis on the timeless value of song. Abercrombie's flowing phrasing and luminous tone, made possible by his thumb technique, refined in recent years instead of a plectrum, enliven both his five original compositions and Copland's pieces, as well as an interpretation of the Miles Davis classic "Nardis" in the tradition of Bill Evans. "Up and Coming" is characterized by a twilight atmosphere, in which the melodic current acts as a guiding star.
