Eight recordings deep into his solo career,
Rick Margitza has become a firm believer in the power of music to emotionally document the joys, sorrows and in between times of his life. The tenorman Jazz Times once called "one of contemporary music's most important saxophonist" stays true to his heart on his moodswinging Palmetto Records debut, offering wistful impressions -- some melancholy, some happily reflective, always melodic, swinging both hard and subtle -- in the wake of a difficult breakup of a recent relationship. The cover art alone is priceless -- a woman's shoe about to stomp a toy truck,
Margitza on the back holding the pieces -- but the music is the truer conveyor of an intensely personal journey back to the light.
Margitza, who has worked over the years with some of jazz's top performers -- from legends like
Miles Davis to popular young lions like
Joey Calderazzo -- brings together yet another amazing quartet: pianist
Mulgrew Miller, bassist
Scott Colley (who played on the saxophonist's previous album,
Heart of Hearts), and drummer
Brian Blade, best known for his work with
Wayne Shorter and
Joni Mitchell. Each track of
Memento is reflective of the many different emotions of a relationship, from the highest joys of the promise of forever to the sorrow over the dashed dream. "Touch" opens with
Miller's moody piano, then eases into a gently percussive blues flavor before opening up to a full, excitable swing with plenty of feisty sax improvisation.
Margitza swings more gently over the rolling basslines of "Blue for You," then waxes a bit melancholy on the ironically titled "Witches," which features exotic soundscaping and playful drum swells. "Spin" is all smoky late-night romance, which leads into the poignant title ballad about the beautiful memories that remain. "Kiss & Tell" has a seductive Brazilian percussion pattern beneath
Margitza's soulful melody and then
Miller's eloquent piano improvisations. "Unembraceable" shifts moods from the wild piano runs at the start to some of
Margitza's warmest, most intimate tones later, while "Points to Ponder" does likewise, opening as a graceful ballad before breaking for a rolling drumbeat sequence midway through; it concludes as a brooding, percussive jam featuring an impossibly quick piano and bass duet.