Alan Broadbent Trio - Like Minds

Alan Broadbent is one of New Zealand's favourite musical sons and perhaps the most well-known and multi-talented of them all, on 'Like Minds', he takes a seat on the piano bench for his third Savant recording with his trio featuring the great bassist Harvie S and the colourful drumming of Billy Mintz.

Many people are familiar with Alan Broadbent's arranging and conducting for Sir Paul McCartney, Diana Krall, Pat Metheny and Michael Bubl�. Others may know Broadbent has received 8 Grammy nominations and won 2 Grammy Awards for Best Orchestral Arrangement Accompanying a Vocal, one for Natalie Cole and one for Shirley Horn.

Together on 'Like Minds' the Alan Broadbent Trio play with notable clarity and poise, and their performances - even those of familiar standards - are wonderfully tuneful, sometimes whimsical and often moving, with the overall effect always coming across as coolly engaging and totally spontaneous. I'm averse to playing what I jokingly call 'big band trio arrangements,' where everybody plays the rhythmic hits, Broadbent explains. I'll get a big band if I want to do that. For me, for the trio, I want it to change every time.

Spontaneous and off-the-cuff these 9 tracks may be but the closer you listen, the more inventive and exquisitely crafted they sound, with the recording showing that, without a doubt, these three superb musicians are of like minds indeed.

Alan Broadbent: piano
Harvie S: bass
Billy Mintz: drums