Marshall Allen – New Dawn Review

The idea artists lose their creative surge in old age is nonsense. Plenty of musicians are proving this wrong, but Marshall Allen, at the age of one hundred, is a defining example. New Dawn marks his continuation of stylish, improvisational jazz. Sun Ra leader Allen has kept this project under wraps, quietly shifting the release date here or there. High time it gets a release. Dig out that Bandcamp link, this is not one for Spotify. This is not an album to applaud for the age of its composer, but for its tremendous flash of instrumental genius. Perhaps it is the age which gives Allen’s work here new life, or perhaps it is decades of experience in Sun Ra, in finding a striking, fresh route through jazz standards. As much can be heard through New Dawn, which does, as its title suggests, bring on a new revolution of instrumental jazz.  

Gentle work and sweet melodies are the foundation of New Dawn, which does well to keep the sickly-sweet strings at bay. It sounds as though African Sunset will give way to these moments, but Allen and the contemporary players at hand are always one step ahead. Wonderful brass the whole way through, and this is no surprise. What welcome additions there are on New Dawn, of which there are many, come through featured artists and fresh instrumental experiences. Neneh Cherry’s vocal work on the title track is a delicate but well-intended, tremendous addition. Relaxing into the tones Allen and Cherry create here is a sincere pleasure. What the new dawn personifies here is up to the listener, it is impossible to explain the thrill of an experience quite like it – because it depends solely on what you hope to gauge and experience with the fresh break of light.  

New Dawn is keen to explore the big band appeal, too, as heard on Are You Ready. Swinging pieces like the latter song are a chance to kick back with a higher-strung sound. New Dawn keeps things steady yet rarely cowers from trying a new sound here or a higher tone there. It is what makes it such an incredible listen. Those subtle taps of percussion which kick on through Sonny’s Dance are the constant feed, the foundation which allows those saxophone moments to burst through. Movements like Boma are where the real thrills of New Dawn lay. A debut album under Allen’s own name, and a deserving start to an illustrious career which is defined by this moniker or that group. New Dawn is not a break from the joys of instrumental bliss Allen has elsewhere but marks a moment where extending his place in music history, through a wonderful playing style, can be found.  

Reflection is inevitable for an album of this stature, but it comes in subtle blows. String sections on Boma sting the ears as the smoother tones of saxophone and percussion play out. It is the constant reminder, the danger, which keeps Allen on his toes throughout New Dawn. Arkestra veterans, fresh faces of jazz, this Allen piece is a wonderful experience. There is something about it, the arrangements and the playing style, which lingers on the mind as a classic. It is of a certain vintage, the decades of experience and learning to play alongside members of Sun Ra certainly affect this. New Dawn begins as an experience with a firm hand of jazz and ends with an articulate and consistent example of his still strong skills.