Marquis Hill
The Poet
Skiptone Music ***1/2

Twenty-six-year-old Chicago trumpeter Marquis Hill’s third CD, here with the Blacktet, features spoken word poetry, free style, lots of pulsing Blanchard-esque revivalist hard bop, and material that gathers together the Bill Lee ballad ‘Again Never’ and Hill’s own highly condensed compositions. The poet in question in the title is Kevin Sparks who wrote ‘Mary’s Intro’ recited by Mary E. Lawson at the beginning of the album. Hill is joined by a vibes-flavoured band that includes alto saxophonist Christopher McBride who Hill got to know at Northern Illinois University and who also appears on Hill’s earlier albums Sounds of the City and New Gospel. As stylish as a vintage Blue Note album cover with matching musical content. SG
Released on 22 October