reviews

Review of Christmas at Mast Cove by Alan Chase (published in Seacoast Arts & Entertainment, December 13, 2001)

Tom Snow is a fine jazz pianist form Maine, whose latest release "Christmas At Mast Cove," is a wonderful collection of solo interpretations of holiday classics "White Christmas," "Silent Night" and several others, all recorded on the beautiful piano at the Mast Cove Galleries in Kennebunkport, Maine. In true jazz theme-and-variations fashion, Snow takes each tune and creates his own precise music.

Each tune is given a superb treatment, with the version of "Do You Hear What I Hear," being the standout in a remarkable set of performances. Snow has impeccable time, a fine sense of swing and superior technical ability, as well as a keen melodic and harmonic sense. A superb CD.

Review of Northern Standard Time by Alan Chase (published in Seacoast Arts & Entertainment, January 6, 2000)

For the past several years, Maine-based pianist Tom Snow has built a solid reputation as a versatile and swingin' jazz musician. He is a thoughtful soloist and complimentary accompanist whose abilities have been showcased around the state of Maine and, in more recent times, as part of the piano rotation at the Press Room with the Jim Howe Trio. Now comes this CD which presents a superb showcase for this fine jazz musician.

Snow possesses a superb touch at the keyboard. His solos have a story-like quality that begin simply, build to a solid climax, and resolve back to simple endings. His right hand lines are fluid and imaginative, while his left hand chords are rich and full. These qualities come to light most notably on the four solo selections, especially on "What Are You Doing For The Rest Of Your Life?" On a romping version of "on Green Dolphin Street," Snow displays an affinity for the McCoy Tyner approach, creating a solo that weaves in and out of the tune's structure with energy and exuberance.

Snow's influences range from Tyner back to Tatum, and he displays his influences all throughout the recording, while exhibiting initial signs of finding his own voice.

Other highlights of this CD include the duo performances with trombonist Don Doane who plays with his typical fire and humor, a fiery version of "What Is This Thing Called Love" with Rick Gordan's incisive sax solo and Jim Howe's driving bass work.

Snow and tenor sax man Ralph Norris give a tender reading of "A Nightingale Sang In Berkeley Square," giving this fine CD an elegant closing, giving us a glimpse of a new jazz piano voice on the rise.

Review of Northern Standard Time by Kathleen Kolman (published in Seacoast Jazz, November, 1999)

When you consider the wealth of jazz talent that lives and works in the northern New England area, it comes as somewhat of a surprise that many of these artists have not been recorded. As more and more are recording for the first time, however, they are providing you, the listener, with evidence of their work; for others a new recording means an ongoing documentation.

Both these statements are validated by these two superb recordings, the debut of Thomas Snow, and the continuing work of Paul Broadnax and Fred Haas. In both, there are excellent examples of the healthy state of jazz in this region. Thomas Snow's Northern Standard Time is a pianistic tour-de-force by a young jazz piano talent that bears watching and listening for.

Snow mines the Great American Songbook for the bulk of the material on his recording, performing in a variety of contexts from solo to quartet. What he achieves is exemplary, yet he doesn't just give rote performances of the material. Instead, Snow dresses a number of the standards on this recording in new clothing, giving the old tunes a new freshness and life. This is most notable on the trio tunes "Puttin' On the Ritz" and "On Green Dolphin Street," both of which are performed in a style similar to that of pianist Chick Corea, with bassist Josh Davis and drummer Phil Verrill coaxing and pushing Snow into imaginative territory on his solos, creating an infectious groove.

The trio also gives a relaxed, swinging version of "Who Can I Turn To" that is a pure delight. Saxophonist Rick Gordan and bassist Jim Howe join Snow and Verrill for a brisk, up-tempo version of "What Is This Thing Called Love, " Howe driving the tune with his usual enthusiasm and no-nonsense swing, and Gordon displaying his lyrical playing to full advantage.. It's great to hear this fine saxophonist get a chance to be heard outside of his usual big band context (how about giving Gordon a Press Room Sunday night with Snow and Jim Howe's trio?).

The duo selections with trombonist Don Doane are outstanding.The solo selections are also well done, with Snow working the lyrical content of each tune well, most notably on "What Are You Doing For the Rest of Your Life," a truly stunning interpretation of Legrand's beautiful ballad. The CD closes with the highlight of this session, a duo with Snow and tenor sax man Ralph Norris on a lovely version of "A Nightingale Sang In Berkeley Square." Norris states the the melody simply and softly, evoking a subtone sound that is pure beauty, with Snow filling in underneath. Only towards the end of this particular tune does Snow tend to overplay a bit, almost covering Norris' tender melody; at the last minute, however, Snow holds back, and this superb recording ends on a soft and simple note.

Review of Northern Standard Time by Nick Humez (published in The Dissident, November,1997)

Something completely different: A brand new CD from Yarmouth jazz pianist Tom Snow, called "Northern Standard Time." This is a subtle pun, for "standards" comprise all but one of the twelve selections on this recording.

But that doesn't mean a lack of surprise: The Latinesque syncopation in the opening cut, a cover of "Puttin on the Ritz," fairly bristles with the shock of the new, and Snow's flashy piano riffs sparkle against the up-tempo backdrop of the rest of his trio (Josh Davis, bass, and Phil Verrill, drums).

Snow's trio alternates with solo piano cuts (our favorite: a foot-tapping, short-and-sweet "Lullaby of Birdland") with additional texture from Don Doane on trombone (particularly mellow in "Stardust"), Ralph Norris (tenor sax on the lovely final number, "A Nightingale Sang In Berkeley Square") and Steve L'Heureux on trombone and flute in his own composition, "The Happy Canister."

Snow has lined up over a dozen stores in Maine between Ellsworth and Portland to carry his CD. The trio plus Norris and Doane will be featured on Rich Tozier's "Riffs and Rhythms" show on Maine Public Radio on Friday, Nov. 7, from 7 to 9:30 p.m. The trio will also appear live with Herb Pomeroy at the Chocolate Church on Sunday, Nov. 9, at 4 p.m. (call 442-8455 for more information), and will perform at the Portland Conservatory of Music on Thursday, Nov. 20, at 7 p.m. (775-3356).

Review of Northern Standard Time by Bennie Green (published in Face Magazine, November,1997)

Boy, it's great to hear this kind of music coming out of Maine. "Northern Standard Time" is another of this issue's releases that couldn't have been given a better title. Tom Snow is from Yarmouth, and his CD contains nine jazz classics which pre-date 1960 and only one song written after 1969.

Essentially, this is a trio recording of Snow on piano, acoustic bassist Josh Davis and drummer Phil Verrill, with various soloists slipping in from time to time. Don Doane, for instance, blows a deep and beautiful path with his trombone across a standard arrangement of "Stardust." Rick Gordan lifts "What Is This Thing Called Love" with an incisive and energetic alto performance. Doane returns for a playful take on "I Though About You," and Ralph Norris adds a warm and fuzzy tone to an extended version of "A Nightingale Sang In Berkeley Square" with his tenor sax.

But don't get the impression that the soloists are running the show here. Snow is very much in control, having arranged most of these chestnuts to sound just a little bit different from the way you may have heard them before, and Davis and Verrill give superb performances throughout. Listen to the understated and brief version "Lullaby of Birdland" for a taste of what incisive arranging and a tight trio can do to infuse an older song with new appeal. Snow steals "Moonglow" with a lively interpretation and later brings a genuine warmth to "Polkadots and Moonbeams."

Really, though, every one of these is a treat. Even "The Happy Canister," the song written earlier this year by trombonist/flutist Steve L'Heureux, shines despite the fact that it very obviously does not belong to the era from which most of these songs came. Snow has done a great job of interpretation here, and even if he never writes a song of his own he is a talent to be watched carefully.