Terra Firma Andrew McCormack

• 1 Brooklyn Memoir 05:15
• 2 Clementine Dream 06:40
• 3 Second Circle 07:30
• 4 Somebody Else's Song 05:24
• 5 Confirmation 02:39
• 6 Fragile 06:26
• 7 Dear Old Stockholm 06:33
• 8 Fake News 04:01
• 9 Better To Have Loved 04:58
• 10 Cherry Blossom 04:47
• 11 Work 03:40
• 12 Prayer For Atonement 07:25
• Total Runtime 01:05:18

Info for Terra Firma

British piano virtuoso Andrew McCormack has teamed up with fast rising bassist Joe Downard and supreme US drummer Rod Youngs, to complete a super trio that delivers wide ranging contemporary piano trio jazz in the vein of Keith Jarrett and Brad Mehldau. McCormack has been an essential partner with the Kyle Eastwood Band, while both Downard and Youngs remain the most in demand players on the London and international jazz scene.

Andrew gives us a sense of his recent work, prior to Terra Firma: "For the past few years I’ve been focussing on my Prog-jazz outfit, Graviton. Although I find this genre of music stimulating and a lot of fun, when the lockdowns came upon us, I found myself working on ideas and skills based around the acoustic jazz piano genre again. Musically, it’s my home; it’s where I started. Perhaps there was even some comfort in doing that. My instincts tell me that audiences may need the same."

Andrew explains how Terra Firma came about: “Most of the music was developed at my London home during the COVID pandemic lockdowns of 2020/21. Tours and concerts were cancelled and I, like all of us, suddenly found myself at home 24/7. Knowing I wouldn’t have this opportunity again, I tried to make the most of the situation that I could. Some of the titles on this record allude to particular events of the last few years. ‘Prayer for Atonement’ was written as a response to the killing of George Floyd and the chaos that followed it. With the current situation in Ukraine, that prayer continues. ‘Fake News’ is truly the scourge of our times as we all seem susceptible given the algorithms of the internet. But the hopeful ‘Cherry Blossom’ was written in the spring of 2021, where things were starting to look up after a terrible winter and there were finally glimpses of normality on the horizon.”

McCormack continues: “This album also marks my return to the trio format, where I began with my debut album, Telescope, over almost two decades earlier. I’ve been playing with Rod Youngs since the early 2000s in Gary Crosby’s Nu Troop and extensively with Denys Baptiste’s epic Let Freedom Ring project. We go way back! I’m happy to have become acquainted with Joe Downard more recently. He’s part of a new generation of skilled but forward-looking musicians who also happens to live just round the corner from me in Camberwell. It reminds me of my Prospect Park days in Brooklyn, where all my neighbours were musicians.”

Andrew describes his long-standing relationship with Ubuntu Music: “I'm continually amazed at the development of Ubuntu Music and how it's fast becoming one of the most important indie labels in the jazz world. Martin Hummel is an exceptional talent and I'm honoured to be a part of this growing family.”

Martin Hummel, Director of Ubuntu Music, concludes: “Andrew is an essential part of our Ubuntu Family. He was the first artist to join us. The Label represents nearly his entire catalogue of exceptional and musically diverse releases. Andrew continues to reinvent himself as an artist with a return to his most popular trio format, while delivering melodic, highly seductive compositions that are flawlessly performed, with hints of Jarrett, Mehldau and others subconsciously whispering in the background. We continue to be over the moon with representing such a considerable talent.”

“…now at the pinnacle of his compositional powers.” (BBC Music Magazine)

Andrew McCormack, piano
Joe Downard, double bass
Rod Youngs, drums

Andrew McCormack
is a composer and pianist at the peak of his creative powers. Born in 1978 in the UK and now residing in New York, McCormack has built a formidable reputation as one of Britain's hottest pianists and a skilful composer of huge talent.

In 2007 he burst onto the scene with his debut album, Telescope, a masterful record converging McCormack's inimitable free flowing melodic lines with his rhythmic impulse.

Since then, McCormack has extensively toured the globe as a bandleader with his trio and with the saxophonist, Jason Yarde. The McCormack&Yarde Duo released a series of highly acclaimed albums including MY Duo in 2010, and Places And Other Spaces in 2011.

McCormack has been a driving force within the groups of A- listers Kyle Eastwood, Eric Alexander, Denys Baptiste and Jean Toussant, as well as a host of other leading artists.

Having developed and honed a skilfully original approach to writing and performance in the jazz tradition, he’s able to captivate audiences with his emotional and expressive style.

His music is quality-driven with a yearning emotive aesthetic, which may be described as quintessentially British. Yet, his move to New York has brought out a greater depth to swing, interplay and mesmeric live sound.

The result is a world-class pianist and formidable composer, who is ready to take that defining next step on to the international stage as a solo artist. With a stable home at Edition Records, new management, a host of weighty press campaigns and a new forthcoming trio album with New York musicians (Zack Lober on bass and Colin Stranahan on drums), 2014 looks set to be the most defining year of Andrew McCormack's musical career to date.

This album contains no booklet.