Burton Greene Trio

In the music that he makes with Wilber Morris (bass) and Lou Grassi (drums), Greene confirms why he is one of the most radical poly-stylists among all the piano artists currently active in North America's improvised music scene. His deep, playful engagement with tradition extends from a Monk-like fusion of rag and stride styles in "Mississippi Clarence" to fractal call and response patterns in "Frag-u-meant." From funky swing lines in "Lennie Lives" (for Lennie Tristano) to the jaunty exuberance of "Tilo Akandita Brikama," an African vamp composed by Danish guitar player Pierre Dorge in memory of South African bass player Johnny Dyani (a shaping spirit in the New Jungle Orchestra, one of the great bands of the '80s). Greene constantly strips his music of pretensions, challenging the hip-ocracy of our culture with cool questions about ultimate truth like, "What's Your Jones?" Greene is one of those guys whose music just might change your world.