(“Nardis” performed by a lineup not on album)
The Birdman soundtrack from 2014 gained the talented drummer Antonio Sanchez much notice as a composer. That goes along to his long-held reputation as a sideman in Pat Metheny’s various bands and a first-call drummer elsewhere by the finest jazz musicians in New York. This Mexico City native’s career as a leader got off to a good start just a few years ago with New Life, and his feature as a all-around musician continues with The Meridian Suite from 2015. But along with Meridian came a different kind of Sanchez album, one that I want to spotlight here.
Three Times Three (CAM Jazz) is Sanchez’s bare knuckles record. It’s where he testifies to just how powerful, how virtuosic and how sophisticated of a drummer he is capable of being, in the context of him being the leader and calling all the shots. The title refers to him exhibiting these immense capabilities within the context of a trio, a trio of equals. Actually, three trios of equals.
It isn’t a new concept, but it also isn’t a concept for the merely ‘very good’ players. McCoy Tyner once made a record switching between Ron Carter/Tony Williams and Eddie Gomez/Jack DeJohnette (Supertrios, 1977) and it was the very definition of ‘tour de force’ for this highly influential pianist. Sanchez chose his partners well, too: Brad Mehldau/Matt Brewer, John Scofield/Christian McBride and Joe Lovano/John Patitucci. Like Tyner, he has mixed in sturdy covers — like Wayne Shorter’s “Fall” and Thelonious Monk’s “I Mean You” — with his own compositions, but a full six of the nine songs the master drummer leads over two CD discs are his own.
Interpretative acumen comes first on this album, however; “Nar-this” is actually a minor tweak to Miles Davis’ “Nardis.” Here you’ll find so much nuance in Sanchez’s playing, using the entire kit but avoids being overpowering by carefully modulating himself. Further, Mehldau is restrained enough so that you can really dig into what the drummer is doing, who takes more chances when Mehldau solos, and they pay off every time.
The standout performance for the trio with Scofield and McBride might be Sanchez’s own “Nooks And Crannies” a loose funk locked down by McBride’s nasty groove, bolstered by Sanchez creating a big pocket from his cymbals. Suddenly the pace ratchets up to a drum ‘n’ bass tempo in the middle of Sco’s blues-engrossed guitar solo and Scofield responds by turning on the afterburners, after which McBride likewise does. Returning back to the original pulse, Sanchez blitzes the beat and wrings out every bit of juice from his trap kit. But if you want to hear Sanchez really put on the ultimate advanced course drum clinic, then “Leviathan” is the go-to track. He busts out a groove after a soft intro led by Lovano and throws everything into it; so insanely dense and yet perfectly precise. He downshifts only for Petitucci’s bass solo, resorting to his excellent, characteristic snare rim work.
It’s no small honor to be labeled a “Pat Metheny sideman” but Antonio Sanchez has just in the last couple of years progressed way beyond that. Simply put, Three Times Three is the showcase album that leaves no doubts as to his vast abilities as leader, composer and — not least — elite drummer.
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