October 1, 2021
GRAMMY Award winning pianist Bill Charlap returns to Blue Note Records with Street of Dreams, a sublime new album featuring his revered longstanding trio with bassist Peter Washington and drummer Kenny Washington. Street of Dreams is a delightful mix of Great American Songbook favorites and songs by great jazz composers including Billy Strayhorn and Duke Ellington, Kenny Burrell, and Dave Brubeck, whose Ellington homage “The Duke” is available to stream or download today. Street of Dreams will be released November 12 on CD and digital formats with a vinyl release to follow on December 17.
Street of Dreams is also a reflection of the literal and metaphorical road traveled together by Charlap and the Washingtons (no relation, other than the one forged on bandstands over decades of collaboration) during the nearly 25 years since the trio formed in 1997. During that time, they’ve become so deeply attuned that on Street of Dreams they seem to breathe as one, whether setting off into rollicking swing or fragile balladry. The album is thus a celebration of these three eloquent voices reconvening, both as a continuation of their profound relationship together and as an end to the disruption caused by the events of 2020. So, it’s apt that this homecoming takes place on Blue Note, which released so many of the trio’s acclaimed recordings throughout the first decade of this millennium including Written In The Stars, Stardust, Somewhere: The Songs of Leonard Bernstein, and Live at the Village Vanguard.
Though it’s his name on the marquee, Charlap insists that the trio is a collective, with all three members playing an equal role. “For me, it’s truly 33 1/3 percent each one of us. What I enjoy listening to is all three of us together in equal parts. That’s really what a band is – at least, that’s what this band is. Everybody’s contributing equally and there’s room to hear a great deal of nuance and a commitment to the song. Our music is about improvising, of course, but the depth of the improvising has grown, the ability to change direction within an idea and surprise each other, ourselves and the listeners while still serving the song.”
That growth is evident from the outset of Street of Dreams with the trio’s playful take on “The Duke.” With one stroke the continuity of the jazz piano tradition is evoked and honored, though without being burdened by the weight of history. Charlap’s touch is sparklingly light, matched by Kenny’s feathery tap dance across his cymbals and buoyed by Peter’s nimble yet robust bass. When Kenny switches to sticks, the depth of swing—a foundational characteristic of this trio—is irrepressible.
“One of the main reasons why we still love to play together is that it seems to be getting deeper because you grow into yourself further and further,” Charlap says. “There’s a feeling all the way through this album, and it’s not accidental – it has to do with every gesture and note meaning something. I think maybe the time that we’ve had to reflect has made that diamond even more dense.”
The track listing for Street of Dreams is as follows:
- The Duke (Dave Brubeck)
- Day Dream (Billy Strayhorn, John LaTouche, Edward Kennedy Ellington)
- You’re All The World To Me (Burton Lane, Alan Jay Lerner)
- I’ll Know (Frank Loesser)
- Your Host (Kenny Burrell)
- Out Of Nowhere (Johnny Green, Edward Heyman)
- What Are You Doing The Rest Of Your Life? (Michel Legrand, Marilyn Bergman, Alan Bergman)
- Street Of Dreams (Victor Young, Samuel M. Lewis)
