Junko Onishi jazz piano    
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Junko Onishi, Fragile (CD, 56:49); Blue Note 98108, 1998
Blue Note Records
304 Park Avenue South, 3rd Floor
New York, NY 10010
Phone: 212-253-3000
Cyberhome: www.bluenote.com


        I'm slightly ashamed to say that before I put on this CD, I had never 
before heard Junko Onishi play. Perhaps that's a testament to the 
difficulty female jazz musicians have being heard and taken 
seriously. One look at Onishi's credentials and you know she's a 
contender, having occupied the piano chair for Jessie Davis, Gary 
Thomas, Joe Henderson, Jackie McLean, and Joe Lovano. She recorded a 
trio album some years back with Billy Higgins and Rodney Whitaker. 
Fragile is her first studio record in three years, and it 
features some blistering piano and Rhodes work. Unfortunately, it's 
deeply marred by some horrific repertoire decisions.
	Onishi is off to a fantastic start with "BWV" (called 
"Phaethon" in the liner notes), a burning track that recalls 70s 
fusion at its best. Sure, maybe it's a throwback, but when Onishi 
gets her piano and Rhodes solos going you'd better have on your 
seatbelt. Drummer Karriem Riggins (aka "Ol Skool Jamz") tears it up, 
as does veteran Marsalis bassist Reginald Veal, who plays electric 
here, much to my surprise. "Complexions" follows - a subtly swinging, 
loosely structured postbop gem. Onishi unleashes sophisticated phrase 
after phrase, suggesting shades of Keith Jarrett and Herbie Hancock. 
It's the real deal.
	Then, like an 18-wheeler taking a turn too fast, the disc 
skids off the highway and into a ditch for three whole consecutive 
tracks. First is a pointless cover of the Righteous Brothers' "You've 
Lost That Lovin' Feelin'." OK, so Onishi can play authentic soul 
piano and deploy some decent reharmonizations on a well-known pop 
tune, but after the first two excellent originals, who needs it? A 
cover of Les McCann's "Compared to What" sinks us even deeper into 
the ditch, with a cheesy vocal by a male guest singer named "Peace." 
And then, just when you thought it couldn't get any worse, Onishi 
breaks out a cover of "Hey Joe." Numb to the pain at this point, I 
began to wonder what this record is trying to be. In her liner notes, 
Onishi says, "I think it's all right to play pop or mix jazz with 
pop." I think it's alright too, but not at the expense of artistic 
focus. Onishi also remarks on the spontaneous decision making that 
prevailed during the recording session. A well-crafted original jazz 
composition can benefit greatly from spontaneity. But a 
thrown-together Hendrix cover sounds like . . . a thrown-together Hendrix 
cover.
	With Onishi's own "Eulogia Variation" we're back to music 
again. But just as it ends, Veal crashes in on synthesized bass with 
the opening riff of Cream's "Sunshine of Your Love." And thus the 
album closes, with yet another 60s cover. I've never been a fan of 
the rock cover trend in the jazz world. The concept has sent many a 
fine jazz CD off the tracks, and it manages nearly to ruin this one 
entirely. I literally have no idea what Onishi was thinking. The 
superior playing on the first two tracks does make me want to check 
out her earlier stuff, however, and keep my eye out for more tasteful 
offerings in the near future.
~David R. Adler

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