Grand River Crossings

2013 studio album by Geri Allen

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
| A Child is Born
(2011)  | Grand River Crossings
(2013)  | Perfection
(2016)

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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]

## Reception

[edit]

Professional ratingsReview 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

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All compositions by Geri Allen except as indicated

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

## Personnel

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

## References

[edit]

1. ^ Motéma Music catalog, accessed June 30, 2014
2. ^ 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 July 25, 2019.
4. ^ a b Fordham, J., The Guardian Review, September 20, 2013
5. ^ a b Larkin, Cormac (November 15, 2013). "Geri Allen: Grand River Crossings: Motown & Motor City Inspirations". The Irish Times. Retrieved July 25, 2019.

* v
* t
* e

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)
* A Lovesome Thing (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)

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