Awake

REVIEWS for 'AWAKE' by Travis Shook 'Shook turns the heat up well beyond the boiling point with pyrotechnical technique and raw energy rarely exhibited by the new breed of pianists.' - Greg Yuska, Jazz Improv's New York Jazz Guide '...consistently showcases Travis Shook at his best.' - Scott Yanow, All Music Guide ''Fresh and hot seven years out of the oven, Awake is a prime example of the adage 'good things come to those who wait.' ' - George Harris, All About Jazz ''A thoroughly enjoyable set of contemporary jazz, Awake captures an exceptional performance by pianist Travis Shook....' - Edward Blanco, AllAboutJazz.com '...

Shook is something of a mystery man.' - Thomas Conrad, JazzTimes Magazine ABOUT AWAKE From the liner notes for Awake by Travis Shook (Dead Horse Records, DHR2722) 'In February of 2000 we decided it was time to go into the studio, and so recorded three albums in a two and a half day period at Systems Two Studio in Brooklyn, NY. Most of the tunes were done first or second take, with rarely a third and never a fourth. This is the second album in the series (which I fondly call the Systems Two Trilogy). The first, American Lullaby, was released under Veronica Nunn's name a few years back and the third is the upcoming Travis Shook Plays Kurt Weill. Awake represents the music I was playing in the clubs in the years between my Sony/Columbia Records debut in 1993 and the current album's recording date of 2000. I recorded these tunes mostly so I could stop playing them. I feel the current album is a very strong representation of my playing, and I hope someone can get something worthwhile out of it. I really fully enjoyed this session.' - Travis Shook, 2005 Personnel: Travis Shook - piano Jennifer Vincent - bass Jaz Sawyer - drums Ron Westray - trombone Kebbi Williams - tenor sax Veronica Nunn - vocalist (on Nothing Like You) BACKGROUND Former Sony/Columbia recording artist Travis Shook is somewhat of a jazz enigma. He has been called a 'man of mystery' by JazzTimes, 'pianist-in-exile' by Time Out New York, and although he has been highly praised by the likes of Tony Williams and Ahmad Jamal, remains largely unknown to the public. Shook is an acoustic jazz pianist-one who demonstrates an unusually wide scope of feeling from the simple to the complex, the conventional to the unconventional, and from the softest, most lush ballads, to the fiercest, hard-driving jazz. 'It's all the same to me,' Shook explains. 'I don't distinguish between different moods-it's about nothing but the groove. That's why I put the same energy into a slow tune as a fast tune.' Born in Orville, California on March 10, 1969, Shook (who began studying the piano at the age of seven) moved to Olympia, Washington with his parents when he was ten and spent his adolescent years in the Pacific Northwest. Shook was never a jazz snob; he also appreciates rock and played some rock guitar growing up. But as a teen-ager, Shook fell in love with improvisation and realized that jazz piano would be his primary focus. Shook's pianistic influences have included Ahmad Jamal, McCoy Tyner, Duke Ellington, Harold Mabern, Herbie Hancock, and Bill Evans, and he also cites non-pianists like saxophonist John Coltrane, trumpeter Miles Davis, and drummer Elvin Jones as strong influences. At 18, Shook moved to New Jersey to attend William Paterson College, where he studied with Mabern. Shook notes: 'Having Harold Mabern as my piano teacher at William Paterson College was the first time I got to stand next to a real jazz musician and see for myself how an experienced jazz musician thinks.' After graduating from Paterson in 1990 with a BA in jazz performance, Shook returned to Washington State and spent three years in the band of veteran bassist Buddy Catlett (famous for his work with Count Basie and Louis Armstrong, among others). 'Buddy took me under his wing,' Shook recalls. 'Working with Buddy Catlett was where I really got my grounding in the jazz tradition. I learned a lot about the history of jazz during that time. It was a valuable experience working with him a