{"id":753,"date":"2020-05-09T17:51:46","date_gmt":"2020-05-09T22:51:46","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/postgenre.org\/staging\/4567\/?p=753"},"modified":"2021-06-24T17:08:22","modified_gmt":"2021-06-24T22:08:22","slug":"review-ambrose-akinmusires-on-the-tender-spot-of-every-calloused-moment","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/postgenre.org\/staging\/4567\/review-ambrose-akinmusires-on-the-tender-spot-of-every-calloused-moment\/","title":{"rendered":"Review: Ambrose Akinmusire’s ‘on the tender spot of every calloused moment’"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Tonic, minor third, fourth, minor fifth, fifth, minor seventh. While this describes the blues scale, such a summation misses the point entirely. The blues is about more than a series of set modes or even emotions. Although often identified with sorrow, the form has always extended far beyond. In light of its historical basis, it had to. Forged from the cries of the downtrodden – first from the field hollers and work songs of slaves then from their freed descendants for whom equality was and is still denied – a singular focus on the depressing would fail to lift the oppressed. Resilience and optimism are a requisite part of the music, whether utilizing the spiritual promise of a better place or more worldly considerations. Few works better express the blues of the contemporary era than Ambrose Akinmusire\u2019s on the tender spot of every calloused moment<\/em> (Blue Note, 2020). <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Consider \u201cRoy\u201d, a eulogy to fallen friend and mentor Roy Hargrove. As can be expected, it is slow and mournful, seemingly not just of remembrance of the loss of a major figure but also in reflection on the substance abuse issues which Hargrove, and countless others, have struggled with throughout their lives and that have ravished communities. Even in this short and sorrowful tune, however, there is hope as it is under-girded – a point made clear at the minute and a half mark – by the gospel song \u201cThe Lord\u2019s Prayer.\u201d  \u201cHooded procession (read the names aloud)\u201d, which continues the bandleader\u2019s newest piece addressing racial violence, is similarly solemn yet ends the album on a hopeful note of a time when these atrocities can end. \u201cYessss\u201d  begins as a somber ballad and though it never turns into a completely celebratory anthem, something more accepting and forward-focused still shines through. <\/p>\n\n\n

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