BY ROB TAUBE, Brooklyn Skyline
On her CD "Fearless Dreamer", Brooklyn trumpeter Pamela Fleming proves herself worthy of the album's title - in that she manages, with her horn and her voice, to express feelings that are sometimes bold, sometimes idealistic, and sometimes both at the same time.
With music and lyrics composed entirely by Fleming, this album offers tastes of jazz, funk, rock and African music. Yet none of these labels alone can accurately describe what this eclectic artist's debut disc is all about. The crosscurrents are too strong, the hybridizations too rich for that. One common theme that does run through all the tracks, however, is an unmistakable sense of passion, often inspired by other musicians that have touched her art and her life.
"The main thing for me is not having music that just fills up space, it should be emotion from a person's soul", said Fleming. "Some emotion [in music] is manufactured, especially when things are geared toward making a hit."There is nothing manufactured or artificial about the energy that drives "Fearless Dreamer."
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| Photo © 1998 Chris Whitehead |
The track "Because of Anthony", written for the bassist Anthony Jackson, is a simple tune whose rhythm and harmony are almost minimalistic in their lack of syncopation and adornment. The effect of the simplicity is striking - it gives Fleming and saxophonist Allen Won space to stretch out and explore long, lyrical phrases.
Unlike many horn players fluent in jazz, Fleming holds no contempt for the straight pop-rock feel that "Because of Anthony" evokes. "The first record I bought was "Strangers in the Night", she said. [And] when I saw Herb Alpert at the Garden, I said 'Yeah, that's what I want to do.' "
But this CD goes further into alternative styles than Alpert ever did, as in "Distance", dedicated to reed man Thomas Chapin, who died of leukemia when Fleming was completing the album (and who actually plays flute on the track). Starting with a contemplative guitar obbligato, the tune moves into a hypnotic African groove over which Fleming and Chapin blow cool, provocative solos. Near the end, the band opens up and Fleming soars into the upper register for a moving finale. Clearly, this is no "Tijuana Taxi."
African influences surface again in "Ba-Bo-Dé", a track dedicated to the late Fela Anikulapo Kuti, a politically active Nigerian musician whose work Fleming calls "deep" and "incredible". "Ba-Bo-Dé" sizzles with sub-Saharan heat, as Fleming chants pure vowels with fellow vocalist Purifory over a funk-tinged rhythm laid down by drummer Todd Isler.
Fleming's all-female horn trio Burning Brass spent time in Fela's house in Nigeria while touring with the reggae act Burning Spear in the mid-80s.
The tour and the trip were significant in her artistic life, not only because of the musical growth she experienced, but because of prejudices exhibited by some audiences.
"We were playing out in Brooklyn the night Peter Tosh was killed," Fleming recalled. "The audience was looking at us in the band (Fleming and saxophonist Jenny Hill) and some of them were yelling 'GET THOSE WHITE GIRLS OFF THE STAGE!' "
Rather than being intimidated, Fleming and her band mates worked hard to show the hardcore reggae fans that these "white girls" (along with trombonist Nilda Richards, who is black) could play the music properly.
"It was kind of funny," Fleming recalled. "At first their arms were crossed and their faces were scrunched up, but then you could see we were winning them over."
The prejudice Fleming has encountered is not limited to the reggae world. In the wedding and club date scene, where Fleming freelances to make ends meet, many bandleaders seem reluctant to hire her simply because she is a woman.
While such outdated thickheadedness might infuriate others, Fleming takes it in stride, continuing to write, record, and play gigs with those that appreciate her strong sound, true intonation, and passionate expression. She has recently appeared on-stage with Natalie Merchant, The Indigo Girls, Bonnie Raitt, and Sarah McLachlan. And by continuing to dream fearlessly, she may soon find that her name is as well-recognized as any of them.
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