I’m featuring a great album by bassist Tom Kennedy this month not just because he is a great bassist and musician, but also because one of my favorite drummers, Dave Weckl, is playing on the album. Weckl and Tom play as though they are joined at the hip; so tight on the funk-fusion-jazz instrumentals on this album. Tom played on most of Weckl’s recordings as well as on the albums of many important jazz and fusion artists. Here’s a review that was posted on notreble.com, a site I follow closely, and a video of the first track on the album “Anticipation”.
Tom Kennedy has returned with a new solo album called New Start featuring nine original compositions. The powerhouse jazz fusion bassist is joined by an equally incredible cast of musicians to flesh out his songs: Dave Weckl, Eric Marienthal, Randy Brecker, Mike Stern, Bill Evans, and more.
Kennedy plays most of the album on his Fodera electric basses, though the final track, “Jazz It Up,” features his double bass work. Each song on the album began as a seed of an idea that blossomed into its final form.
“The legendary pianist Keith Jarrett once said of his recorded music, ‘If there were words to express it, there would be no need for the music.’ Ironically, Keith’s sentiment provided the perfect verbiage for describing the process I’ve experienced in creating the music for this album,” Kennedy shares. “These compositions did not come to me in complete thoughts, but rather as bits and pieces of melody, harmony, or rhythm to build from, much as in a live improvisation. A single note or chord could inspire a pathway to a new section or critical transition of a song, and at times a completely orchestrated idea would just pop into my head. No method, no foresight…just the music.”
“Tom Kennedy (‘My brother from another mother’) and I have been playing and making music together since we were 15 years old,” says Weckl. “‘New Start’ is the latest documentation of the deep chemistry and love we share for music. Playing on and mixing this record was such an extreme pleasure. Tom is not only one of the greatest bass players of our time but a fabulous composer as well. I hope you enjoy our presentation!”
Hear their chemistry and Kennedy’s amazing bass tone on the opening track, “Anticipation.”