Grand River Crossings

Grand River Crossings
Grand River Crossings
Studio album by Geri Allen
Released	September 10, 2013
Recorded	August 23 & 24, 2012; Klavierhaus, NYC
Genre	Jazz
Length	60:06
Label	Motéma MTM-128
Producer	Geri Allen & Kunle Mwanga
Geri Allen chronology

Grand River Crossings (subtitled Motown & Motor City Inspirations) is an album of songs associated with or inspired by Detroit and Motown by pianist Geri Allen recorded in 2012 and released on the Motéma label in 2013.^[1] Grand River Crossings was Geri Allen's final album before her death from cancer in 2017.

Reception[]

Professional ratings
Review scores
Source	Rating
Allmusic	^[2]
All About Jazz	^[3]
The Guardian	^[4]
The Irish Times	^[5]

Allmusic awarded the album 4½ stars, stating, "Of her 19 offerings, Grand River Crossings is certainly her most personal. It's also among her very best".^[2] The Guardian review by John Fordham awarded the album 3 stars, noting, "There's a tentativeness to some of this music, but Allen's mix of intelligence, spontaneity and precision nonetheless put her in a very special league".^[4] Cormac Larkin of The Irish Times commented "...the real interest on Grand River Crossings is in hearing player of the calibre and creativity of Allen jamming quietly on some of the tunes which formed her musical mind."^[5]

Track listing[]

All compositions by Geri Allen except as indicated

"Wanna Be Startin' Somethin'" (Michael Jackson) - 2:21
"Tears of a Clown" (Stevie Wonder, Hank Cosby, Smokey Robinson) - 5:31
"That Girl" (Stevie Wonder) - 6:05
"Grand River Crossings I" - 0:48
"The Smart Set" (Roy Brooks) - 2:54
"Let It Be" (John Lennon, Paul McCartney) - 3:58
"Space Odyssey" (Marcus Belgrave) - 5:36
"In Appreciation" - 1:04
"Baby I Need Your Loving" (Eddie Holland, Lamont Dozier, Brian Holland) - 4:29
"Itching in My Heart" (Holland, Dozier, Holland) - 1:56
"Stoned Love" (Kenny Thomas, Frank Wilson) - 3:40
"Grand River Crossings II" - 0:52
"Inner City Blues" (Marvin Gaye, James Nyx Jr.) - 4:26
"Save the Children" (Al Cleveland, Renaldo Benson, Marvin Gaye) - 7:15
"Nancy Joe" (Gerald Wilson) - 3:39

Personnel[]

Geri Allen - piano
Marcus Belgrave - trumpet (tracks 5, 7 & 14)
David McMurray - alto saxophone (track 10)

References[]

^ Motéma Music catalog, accessed June 30, 2014
^ Jump up to: ^a ^b Jurek, T., Allmusic Review accessed June 30, 2014
^ "Geri Allen: Grand River Crossings". All About Jazz (in Italian). September 24, 2013. Retrieved 25 July 2019.
^ Jump up to: ^a ^b Fordham, J., The Guardian Review, September 20, 2013
^ Jump up to: ^a ^b Larkin, Cormac (15 November 2013). "Geri Allen: Grand River Crossings: Motown & Motor City Inspirations". The Irish Times. Retrieved 25 July 2019.

[1] Motéma Music catalog, accessed June 30, 2014

[Allmusic-2] Jump up to: ^a ^b Jurek, T., Allmusic Review accessed June 30, 2014

[3] "Geri Allen: Grand River Crossings". All About Jazz (in Italian). September 24, 2013. Retrieved 25 July 2019.

[Guardian-4] Jump up to: ^a ^b Fordham, J., The Guardian Review, September 20, 2013

[IT-5] Jump up to: ^a ^b Larkin, Cormac (15 November 2013). "Geri Allen: Grand River Crossings: Motown & Motor City Inspirations". The Irish Times. Retrieved 25 July 2019.

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show v t Geri Allen
Years given are for the recording(s), not first release, except where noted.
Albums as leader or co-leader	The Printmakers (1984) Home Grown (1985) Open on All Sides in the Middle (1986) In the Year of the Dragon (1989) Segments (1989) Twylight (1989) Live at the Village Vanguard (1990) The Nurturer (1990) Maroons (1992) Twenty One (1994) Eyes in the Back of Your Head (1995–96) Some Aspects of Water (1996) The Gathering (1998) The Life of a Song (2004) Timeless Portraits and Dreams (2006) Flying Toward the Sound (2008) Geri Allen & Timeline Live (2009) A Child Is Born (2011) Grand River Crossings (2012)
With Oliver Lake	Expandable Language (1984) Otherside (1988) Talkin' Stick (1997) At This Time (2008)
With others	Movies (Franco Ambrosetti, 1986) Movies Too (Franco Ambrosetti, 1988) The Collective (Cecil Brooks III, 1989) Duet in Detroit (Roy Brooks, 1989) Droppin' Things (Betty Carter, 1990) Feed the Fire (Betty Carter, 1993) Sound Museum: Hidden Man (Ornette Coleman, 1996) Sound Museum: Three Women (Ornette Coleman, 1996) Motherland Pulse (Steve Coleman, 1985) Flute Talk (Buddy Collette, 1988) Etudes (Charlie Haden, 1987) The Montreal Tapes: with Geri Allen and Paul Motian (Charlie Haden, 1989) The Montreal Tapes: Liberation Music Orchestra (Charlie Haden, 1989) Reflections in Change (Craig Handy, 1999) Lift Every Voice (Charles Lloyd, 2002) Jumping the Creek (Charles Lloyd, 2004) Decision in Paradise (Frank Lowe, 1984) Monk in Motian (Paul Motian, 1988) Mindgames (Greg Osby, 1988) Living on the Edge (Dewey Redman, 1989) Crunchin' (Wallace Roney, 1993) Munchin' (Wallace Roney, 1993) Bemsha Swing (Woody Shaw, 1986) By Any Means Necessary (Gary Thomas, 1989)