Description
2026 repress of 'Touch and Flee' from Neil Cowley Trio on heavyweight brown coloured vinyl. It marked a defining moment in the evolution of the band, spotlighting the ever- increasing brilliance of Cowley as a composer. With long time band mates Evan Jenkins on drums and Rex Horan on bass, they jumped headlong into new territory to present what they described as "our concert hall record" for an altogether deeper listening journey.
Gone were the familiar hook laden tunes, repeating riffs and pounding crescendos, replaced, in the main, by shifting, expansive melodies, longer elegant passages, and a broader brush stroke on Cowley's blank canvas.
What was familiar though was Cowley's power to move through music. Exquisitely graceful movements met with dark haunting passages. And although this was a new direction for Neil Cowley Trio, their personality, and unmistakable sound, still shone through. We hear, for example in the epic, sweeping, Kneel Down a three movement piece containing pulse, power, climax, spaciousness, and then, gentle surprise. The wonky jazz of Winterlude keeps the head nodding while Cowley's proclivity for atmospheric film scores remains.
'Touch and Flee' was recorded at the legendary RAK studios with Grammy nominated Dom Monks in the producer's chair.
Neil Cowley: piano
Rex Horan: double bass
Evan Jenkins: drums
Press:
"It's a recording of hidden depths and on-the-pulse sonic values that signals a bright new chapter in the Neil Cowley Trio story." - **** Jazzwise
"the pieces are varied (gospelly slow-burners, jazzy cat-and-mouse games, systems-music churnings, Jarrett-like churchy funk) and the playing richer and more intricate." - **** The Guardian
"The recording is of excellent quality - Evan Jenkins' drums sound lush with pin-point sharp cymbal sounds and Rex Horan's bass has a lovely twang to it - Neil Cowley's piano is mixed very well so it sits nicely between the two. Full marks then to producer Dom Monks." - UK Jazz News