Todd Beaney - Piano Praise 2

Todd Beaney - Piano Praise 2
2010, Todd Beaney

Todd Beaney is a pianist, composer, arranger and educator.  He has written or arranged for such groups as U.S. Army Blues; New Orleans Brass Quintet, the Billy Graham Crusade, the Glenn Miller Orchestra and Truth.  The ASCAP member has four albums under his belt and three volumes of hymn arrangements for piano.  In his spare time, Beaney also serves as a piano adjudicator for the New York State School Music Association and serves as Music Director for Wilton Baptist Church in Wilton, Connecticut.  The Princeton grad, with Master of Music degrees from both McNeese State University and the Eastman School of Music has made music a lifelong passion.  His fourth album, released in 2010, is Piano Praise 2.  It’s a collection of piano-based instrumentals covering classic hymns and modern Praise music.

Beaney opens with “I Sing The Mighty Power Of God”, an intriguing first step for an instrumental album.  Beaney shows a strong left hand presence early on while allowing his right hand free reign to run at will.  Beaney is an active player, not condescending to the passive, new-age evocations of many contemporaries.  Beaney shows a sense of drama and passion in the music.  “Lord, I’m Coming Home” has a soulful feel and shows Beaney’s own sense of internal rhythm.  Beaney lights up the song in an artful and delicate fashion with a sense of confidence that’s part self assurance and part faith.  “Oh, How I Love Jesus” has a pretty, rolling quality that is appealing, even if Beaney’s piano style sounds like that of a secondary school choir director. 

Beaney brings a bit of Gershwin to “At Calvary”, with an arrangement that sounds like it would be right at home somewhere in the middle of ‘Porgy and Bess’.   Fans of Stephen Schwartz will be listening closely to Beaney’s take on “Grace Greater Than Our Sin”.  Beaney imparts the same sense of light and melody that infused Schwartz’ early works for the stage in one of the most inspired performances on the album.  “For All The Saints” sticks with the Broadway feel; an energetic and active take that’s well-played and nicely arranged.  “Brethren, We Have Met To Worship” finds Beaney’s powerful, driven left hand resurfacing.  This is a solid performance, but would benefit greatly from additional instrumentation.    “Walking In Grace” shows a pretty, airy approach.  Beaney creates a majestic feel for the tune, drawing inspiration and energy out of the arrangement in a moment that speaks of glory.  Beaney ponders his way through a wandering jazz interpretation of “Swing Low, Sweet Chariot”.  The elegant piano-bar style is a bit of a surprise, but is nonetheless enjoyable.  Beaney closes with the classic hymn feel of “The Solid Rock”; a musical return to the roots of praise music.

Todd Beaney shows off a progression of sounds and styles throughout Piano Praise 2 that may be the arc of his own development as a pianist.  Starting with left-hand driven style of the opening track, moving through the somewhat percussive style of a choir director and then into the more refined airs jazz, gospel and show tunes, Beaney explores the representation of faith in music in a multitude of styles that are uniquely American.  This is a niche album, meaning that the market for this material is probably somewhat limited, but Beaney shows enough chops and stylistic flexibility to be of interest to any serious student of the piano in addition to the religious music market. 

Rating: 3 Stars (Out of 5) 

Learn more about Todd Beaney at http://www.toddbeaney.com/.  Piano Praise 2 is available from Amazon.com as a CD or Download.  The album is also available via iTunes.

Steve Erwin - Was It Like This

Steve Erwin - Was It Like This

2006/2008, Steve Erwin

Washington D.C.-area singer/songwriter Steve Erwin exacts a quiet influence on those around him.  With an operatic voice and a detailed-oriented style of song craft, Erwin has made himself a staple of The Beltway’s music scene.  Back in 2006, Erwin released Was It Like This, a debut album that was re-released in 2008 with bonus tracks.  Erwin’s songwriting and voice are certain to capture your attention, and the guitar work of no less than Danny Gatton in support helps to push a good-bordering-on-great album over the edge.

Was It Like This opens with “Sweet Boy”; a solid story-teller song built in a ménage of blues, country and roots rock.  Erwin fills the song with inflection and energy with a voice that makes you want to keep listening.  “Oh, Howard” blends murder, intrigue and the depths of alcoholism into a story about a mentor gone on the lam; an entertaining turn that truly displays Erwin’s talent for detail-oriented song craft.  “In Fall” is a work of art.  Erwin’s quiet song of remembrance is enhanced by Gatton, who fills and frolics in subtly magical measure.  “Walkin’ This Road” is great bluesy-folk with a gospel tinge and R&B backbeat; an entertaining tune with a ‘one-day-at-a-time’ theme that’s highly entertaining. 

“Uncomplicated Love” is a classic Christmas-themed ballad that’s lovelorn and weary yet hopeful all at once.  Erwin bemoans his search for a love that’s built on the basics.  The songwriting here is so classic in style you’ll swear it must be a cover.   “Born A Tourist” is a nine minute blues/rock guitar clinic in the form of a song.  Starting in slow dynamic turns, Erwin and Gatton take listeners to frenetic heights before setting you gently back on earth again.  Particularly if you yourself play guitar, this song on its own makes the album worth checking out.  “Adult Love” explores the twists and turns love sometimes takes before it ends up settling where it belongs.  The theme and lyrics here are solid, but for once Erwin oversteps his bounds in a song that seems musically interminable with its woeful/whiney feel. 

“In The Mix” is a solid, jazz-infused number that shows off the live energy of Erwin and his band while retaining some of the fine tuning that a studio recording provides.  “I Will Sleep” has some real pizzazz, but the melody line veers out of Erwin’s comfortable range and suffers for the fact.  Erwin closes with a stylish live cover of George Gershwin and DuBose Howard’s “Summertime” (Porgy & Bess), hamming up the vocal a bit, presumably to try and sound in character.  It’s a solid performance, but sounds ill-conceived in light of the grand history of the song.  “Summertime” is one of those tunes that have become so iconic that anything less than a stellar performance pales in comparison to the great performances offered up by artists throughout its history.

Steve Erwin does a lot of things right on Was It Like This.  His voice, within his comfortable range, is very much worth spending some time with.  Erwin also has distinctive skill as a songwriter and story teller, showing an attention to detail in his lyrics that is rare and even harder to make work well within the structure of a song.  The addition of Danny Gatton’s guitar work is a boon as well.  Gatton dashes and dances between Erwin’s melody lines with a flair that’s legendary, illuminating the songs with rhythms, sounds and fills that turn great songwriting into works of art.  There are a few wrong turns on this trip, but even they serve to make Was It Like This a bit more memorable. 

Rating: 4 Stars (Out of 5)

 Learn more about Steve Erwin at http://www.stevererwin.com/.  Was It Like This is available digitally from Amazon.com and iTunes.  Amazon also offers a copy of the album on CD; it is the original 2005 release and does not contain the bonus tracks on this version.