''John Bunch Plays Kurt Weill'' is a solo piano album by John Bunch. It was recorded in 1975 and issued by the Chiaroscuro imprint. When it was issued on CD, tracks recorded in 1991 were added.

Recording and music

The album of solo piano performances by Bunch was recorded in May 1975. All twelve pieces were composed by

Kurt Weill Kurt Julian Weill (March 2, 1900April 3, 1950) was a German-born American composer active from the 1920s in his native country, and in his later years in the United States. He was a leading composer for the stage who was best known for his fru ...

. Bunch plays them in a variety of ways: "some at ballad tempo, others with a flavour of

stride Stride or STRIDE may refer to: Computing * STRIDE (security), spoofing, tampering, repudiation, information disclosure, denial of service, elevation of privilege * Stride (software), a successor to the cloud-based HipChat, a corporate cloud-based ...

, some delivered with Monk-like rhythms".

Releases and reception

''John Bunch Plays Kurt Weill'' was released by Chiaroscuro Records. Its CD reissue added a further five Weill compositions that Bunch recorded in 1991. '' The Penguin Guide to Jazz'' described the album as "a rare and strikingly imaginative project". The AllMusic reviewer wrote that it was "one of John Bunch's finest recordings from a long career".

Track listing

Original album

Alabama Song The "Alabama Song"—also known as "Moon of Alabama", "Moon over Alabama", and "Whisky Bar"—is an English version of a song written by Bertolt Brecht and translated from German by his close collaborator Elisabeth Hauptmann in 1925 and set to m ...

" #"Surabaya Johnny" #" My Ship" #" September Song" #"Oh Heart of Love" #"This Is New" #"Westwind" #"Lost in the Stars" #"No Place to Go but Up" #"Le Roi d'Aquitaine" #"Johnny's Song" #" Speak Low"

CD release

Five tracks were added to the original twelve: #"It Never Was You" #"There'll Be Life, Love & Laughter" #"Here I'll Stay" #"What Good Would the Moon Be" #"Moon-Faced, Starry-Eyed"

Personnel

* John Bunch – piano

References

{{reflist Kurt Weill tribute albums Solo piano jazz albums Chiaroscuro Records albums