Faces & Places
Joe Zawinul, at the age of 70, has brought forth an album that continues to celebrate his endless delight in exploring music from around the world. Born in Vienna, he studied at the conservatory there, moving to the United States in 1958 when he received a scholarship to the Berklee School of Music in Boston. He worked in the '60s with a variety of the era's jazz luminaries (Maynard Ferguson,Dinah Washington,Cannonball Adderley) before encounteringMiles Davis. The trumpet player'sIn a Silent Waywas named for Zawinul's title track. This led to the formation ofWeather Report, the band he co-led withWayne Shorterfor 15 years.Faces & Placesmixes vocalists and instrumentalists with daring grace. "Rooftops of Vienna" is a wistful ode that's tinged with the sweetly sad backward glances of a man growing older and finding his boyhood home darting through his dreams. It uses singers as part of the musical stew, rather than as a narrative component. With its blend of exotic acoustic instruments and contemporary electronics, this set is very much in keeping with the direction of Weather Report from the time ofBlack Marketand beyond.--David Greenberger