Breathless (Terence Blanchard album)

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Breathless
Studio album by
Terence Blanchard
ReleasedMay 26, 2015
StudioEsplanade Recording Studios, New Orleans
GenreJazz
Length1:17:57
LabelBlue Note 0602547269393
ProducerRobin Burgess, Terence Blanchard
Terence Blanchard chronology
Magnetic
(2013) 		Breathless
(2015) 		Live
(2018)
Singles from Breathless
  1. "Soldiers"
    Released: April 21, 2015
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[1]
The Guardian[2]
Jazz Forum[3]
Jazzwise[4]
The Irish Times[5]
Tom HullB+[6]

Breathless is a studio album by American jazz trumpeter Terence Blanchard.[7] The album was released on May 26, 2015 by Blue Note Records.[8] The record also produced one single, "Soldiers".[9]

Background[edit]

Breathless features Blanchard's new band, The E-Collective, consisting of Fabian Almazan on keyboards, Charles Altura on guitar, Donald Ramsey on bass, and Oscar Seaton on drums. The album also features Maroon 5's PJ Morton on three cuts, and JRei Oliver, Terence's son, on spoken word. Blanchard explained that he and drummer Oscar Seaton, with whom he has recorded several film scores, had been talking about an album like this for years before they finally found time to record it. Like his previous album A Tale of God's Will, this record is also a thematic album inspired by tragedy.[10] The album title serves as a reminder of the last words said by black New Yorker Eric Garner (“I can’t breathe”) in a chokehold by a NYPD officer[2] and explores the effects of racism and the aftermath of its devastation on societies around the world.[11] Breathless was nominated for 2016 Grammy Award for Best Jazz Instrumental Album.[12]

Reception[edit]

Bill Beuttler of JazzTimes wrote "Blanchard’s trumpet, of course, provides scorching firepower atop the band’s assortment of infectious grooves. It may not be jazz as we know it, but it’s soulful, sophisticated and worth meeting on its own terms. And it’s good that Blanchard finally got around to it."[13] Cormac Larkin of The Irish Times commented "The spirit of Miles Davis would be hard for any American trumpeter in this genre to avoid, and there are certainly echoes of electric Miles, but perhaps also – intentionally or not – there is something more European here, reminiscent of Nils Petter Molvaer’s “future-jazz”, with the austere Nordic grooves replaced by the heat and flawless poise of some old-school jazz-funk".[5] John Fordham of The Guardian noted "It’s an uneven set, and maybe too generically funky for some jazzers, but certainly has its thrilling moments".[2] Matt Collar of AllMusic noted "Ultimately, while Breathless is a break from the aggressive, acoustic swing that has marked much of Blanchard's career, it nonetheless retains all the jaw-dropping artistry and soulful creativity we have come to expect, albeit delivered in a vibrant, electric style".[1] In his review for The Buffalo News, Jeff Simon commented, "The groove on this disc is a bore as often as not... As for consumers of groove music and hip-hop, there’s some decent jazz soloing here but nothing you can’t hear in vastly more impressive circumstances elsewhere."[14]

Track listing[edit]

No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Compared to What" (Featuring PJ Morton)Gene McDaniels5:48
2."See Me As I Am"Blanchard8:52
3."Everglades"Almazan14:33
4."Breathless"Blanchard4:38
5."Confident Selflessness"Blanchard8:13
6."Shutting Down" (Featuring JRei Oliver, PJ Morton)JRei Oliver4:12
7."Soldiers"Blanchard6:08
8."Samadhi" (Spoken words – JRei Oliver)Blanchard3:56
9."Talk to Me" (Featuring Dr. Cornel West)Blanchard4:04
10."Tom & Jerry"Blanchard2:48
11."I Ain't Got Nothin' but Time" (Featuring PJ Morton)Hank Williams4:28
12."Cosmic Warrior"Blanchard5:24
13."Midnight"Guy Berryman, Jonny Buckland, Will Champion, Chris Martin4:53
Total length:1:17:57

Personnel[edit]

The E-Collective

  • Terence Blanchard – trumpet, producer, writer (tracks: 2 4 5 7 8 9 10 12)
  • Donald Ramsey – bass
  • Oscar Seaton – drums
  • Charles Altura – guitar
  • Fabian Almazan – piano, synth

Production

  • Don Was – A&R
  • Steve Cook – A&R, administration
  • Randall Leddy – art direction, design
  • Andrew F. Scott - cover art
  • Casey Contreary – assistant engineer
  • Frank Wolf – engineer, mixing
  • Don Was – executive producer
  • Gavin Lurssen – mastering
  • Henry Adebonojo – photography
  • Robin Burgess – producer
  • Tondrae Kemp – tour manager

Chart performance[edit]

Chart (2015) Peak
position
US Traditional Jazz Albums (Billboard)[15] 7
Billboard 200[16] 12

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b Collar, Matt. "Breathless". Allmusic. allmusic.com. Retrieved 21 December 2016.
  2. ^ a b c Fordham, John (May 21, 2015). "Terence Blanchard: Breathless review – rapturous flares but an uneven set". The Guardian. theguardian.com. Retrieved 21 December 2016.
  3. ^ Dusza, Marek. "Breathless | Jazz Forum". Jazz Forum (in Polish). Retrieved 24 August 2020.
  4. ^ Le Gendre, Kevin (August 2015). "Review". Jazzwise. Retrieved 11 October 2020.
  5. ^ a b Larkin, Cormac (June 3, 2015). "Terence Blanchard: Breathless, Album Review". The Irish Times. irishtimes.com. Retrieved 21 December 2016.
  6. ^ "Tom Hull: Grade List: Terence Blanchard". Tom Hull. Retrieved 9 July 2020.
  7. ^ "TERENCE BLANCHARD ANNOUNCES NEW ALBUM "BREATHLESS" OUT 5/26 TERENCE BLANCHARD ANNOUNCES NEW ALBUM". Blue Note. bluenote.com. April 21, 2015. Retrieved 21 December 2016.
  8. ^ Beuttler, Bill (December 7, 2015). "Terence Blanchard: Breathless, Blue Note Records". Jazz Times. jazztimes.com. Retrieved 21 December 2016.
  9. ^ "Terence Blanchard Soldiers". Allmusic. allmusic.com. Retrieved 22 December 2016.
  10. ^ Spera, Keith (April 24, 2015). "New Orleans trumpeter Terence Blanchard takes on tragedy with 'Breathless'". The Times-Picayune. nola.com. Retrieved 23 December 2016.
  11. ^ Edelstein, Paula (April 21, 2015). "Terence Blanchard announces new Blue Note album titled 'Breathless'". AXS. axs.com. Retrieved 22 December 2016.
  12. ^ La Rosa, David (February 15, 2016). "2016 Jazz Grammy Winners Announced". thejazzline.com. Retrieved 22 December 2016.
  13. ^ Beuttler, Bill (12 July 2015). "Terence Blanchard: Breathless". JazzTimes. jazztimes.com. Retrieved 5 May 2018.
  14. ^ Siomn, Jeff (21 May 2015). "Disc review: Terence Blanchard's E-Collective, 'Breathless'". The Buffalo News. Retrieved 22 February 2020.
  15. ^ "Terence Blanchard". Billboard. Retrieved 3 August 2020.
  16. ^ "Terence Blanchard". Billboard. Retrieved 3 August 2020.

External links[edit]

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