Upward Spiral (album)

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Upward Spiral

Studio album by

Branford Marsalis Quartet

Released

June 10, 2016

Recorded

December 16–19, 2015

Studio

Ellis Marsalis Center for Music, New Orleans

Genre

Jazz

Length

66:18

Label

Marsalis Music/OKeh

Branford Marsalis Quartet chronology

Four MFs Playin' Tunes
(2012)

Upward Spiral
(2016)

The Secret Between the Shadow and the Soul
(2019)

Upward Spiral is an album by the Branford Marsalis Quartet with vocalist Kurt Elling. It was nominated for the Grammy Award for Best Jazz Vocal Album.^[1]

Recording and music

The album was recorded at the Ellis Marsalis Center for Music, New Orleans, on December 16–19, 2015.^[2] The leader of the quartet, saxophonist Branford Marsalis, had not previously recorded an entire album with one vocalist.^[3] The other members were pianist Joey Calderazzo, bassist Eric Revis, and drummer Justin Faulkner.^[4] The music is a mix of upbeat material and some that "ponders loss, pain, dashed expectations and accommodation to all three".^[4] Elling sings "Só Tinha De Ser Com Você" in Portuguese.^[4]

Release and reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	^[3]
DownBeat	^[4]

Upward Spiral was released by Marsalis Music/OKeh Records on June 10, 2016.^[2] The AllMusic reviewer wrote: "Upward Spiral is less an album featuring a singer backed by a jazz ensemble, and more of an album that details the meeting of two highly creative artists whose talents intertwine to find new avenues of expression."^[3] The DownBeat reviewer concluded: "When the albums ends, your first thought may well be, When are these guys going to do this again?"^[4]

Track listing

"There's a Boat Dat's Leavin' Soon for New York"
"Blue Gardenia"
"From One Island to Another"
"Practical Arrangement"
"Doxy"
"I'm a Fool to Want You"
"West Virginia Rose"
"Só Tinha De Ser Com Você"
"Momma Said"
"Cassandra Song"
"Blue Velvet"
"The Return"

Source:^[4]

Personnel

Branford Marsalis – tenor sax, soprano sax
Kurt Elling – vocals
Joey Calderazzo – piano
Eric Revis – bass
Justin Faulkner – drums

Source:^[4]

References

^ "2017 Grammy Awards: Complete list of nominees". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on 2016-12-06. Retrieved 2016-12-06.
^ ^a ^b "Upward Spiral". www.branfordmarsalis.com. Archived from the original on June 21, 2019. Retrieved June 15, 2019.
^ ^a ^b ^c Collar, Matt. "Branford Marsalis Quartet / Kurt Elling / Branford Marsalis: Upward Spiral". AllMusic. Archived from the original on December 13, 2019. Retrieved June 15, 2019.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g de Barros, Paul (August 2016). "Branford Marsalis Quartet with Kurt Elling: Upward Spiral". DownBeat. Vol. 83, no. 8. p. 65.

v t e Branford Marsalis Quartet
Branford Marsalis Joey Calderazzo Eric Revis Justin Faulkner Jeff "Tain" Watts Kenny Kirkland Robert Hurst
Studio albums	Random Abstract (1988) Crazy People Music (1990) Requiem (1999) I Heard You Twice the First Time (1992) Contemporary Jazz (2000) Footsteps of Our Fathers (2002) Romare Bearden Revealed (2003) Eternal (2004) Braggtown (2006) Upward Spiral (2016) The Secret Between the Shadow and the Soul (2019)

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