Artist description

Group Members Harold Blanchard, Piano; Chuck Archard, Electric Bass/Acoustic Bass Guitar; Ron Cangro, Drums; Suzy Parks, Vocals.

Instruments Piano, Bass, and Percussion

Albums Three For All Jazz, Soulful Forecast

Press Reviews For his new album, jazz pianist Harold Blanchard created a now gentle, now effervescent song titled "A Man Called Evans." It's a paean to one of his main inspirations, legendary jazz pianist Bill Evans. The new album by Blanchard's trio, and fans of classic-style jazz will be talking excitedly about a man called Blanchard. The CD "is a stunningly beautiful work, full of spry inventiveness and mellow elegance. Its lyricism will mesmerize casual listeners, and the technical intricacies of the musicians will startle jazz-heads. If there's any justice in the music world, Blanchard (a New Smyrna Beach resident) once again will gain attention on the national stage, as he did in 1985, when he recorded his "New Earth Sonata" with such titans as conductor Quincy Jones, keyboardist Chick Corea and flutist Herbert Laws. On the aforementioned tribute to Evans, Blanchard begins his journey with a plaintive, meandering melody, shape-shifts mid-song into a carefree vibe, then drifts back into a melancholy mood -- a perfect musical metaphor for the too-brief life of Evans. Along with Blanchard's world-class improvisations, the music is spiced by another not-so-secret weapon: Archard's many tasteful, melodic bass solos, which refresh these songs like spring showers. As Blanchard casually admitted last year in an interview with The News-Journal, "I'm after more melody . . . I'm trying to make jazz more digestible -- that may be the word -- for the listener."

Location New Smyrna Beach, Florida - USA

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