For Yussef Dayes, the release of his debut album couldn’t come at a better time. One day after Ezra Collective became the first jazz act to win the coveted Mercury Music Prize – in doing so battering down the mainstream doors for the wonderful wealth of talented jazz musicians that the UK has to offer – one of the scene’s most technically gifted and creative drummers/bandleaders has finally dropped his first full-length solo project, almost five months(!) after title track ‘Black Classical Music’ first whetted our appetites back in April.
I say solo because Dayes is a master of collaboration, having first come to prominence with the 2016 release Black Focus, a collaboration with pianist/producer Kamaal Williams that offers up an eclectic fusion of jazz, funk, and electronica. He followed this up with What Kinda Music, a 2020 joint effort with neo-soul artist, and all-around fountain of good vibes, Tom Misch, in what was an exquisite pairing. Like chilli and lime, these two have an incredible ability to play off each other, which is again present on one of the best tracks from Black Classical Music (and the album’s second single), ‘Rust’.
The track has a mysterious murky quality to it, with Misch’s usual upbeat guitar and voice traded in for ringing harmonics and a deep riff that permeates throughout the 4-minute instrumental track. Both have their jazz staple times to shine, with little dustings of magic throughout an offering that shows a different side to this well-documented pairing.
This willingness to explore different avenues of music is evident across the whole album. From the frenetic energy of the more traditional-jazz-sounding opening track ‘Black Classical Music’ to the chilled out and summery Reggae of ‘Pon di Plaza’ (a wonderful colab with Chronixx), Dayes seems intent on proving his skill on every front – not just for drumming in every style imaginable, but also working his production chops on a wide range of genres.
This adventurousness has, however, led to a 74 minute and 19 song record, which teeters right on the border of being just a bit too much. Track selection is always a difficult thing to balance and when you give yourself that much material, especially with so many features (10 across the album – 11 if you count Dayes giving his young daughter credit for her voice on ‘The Light’), making sure an album doesn’t feel overly long is hard. It must feel almost impossible to leave out any of those that have contributed towards a debut project, but some streamlining could have helped with the album’s accessibility and cohesion, although the track listing helps with this as the album’s overall energy shifts seamlessly from track to track making it an easy listen.
A track that potentially could have faced the cut would be a rehashed release of ‘Raisins Under the Sun’, although any chances to get Shabaka Hutchings (of Sons of Kemet and The Comet is Coming fame), one of the premier saxophonists in the world, must be hard to turn down. This version is not noticeably different from the version from Dayes’ The Yussef Dayes Experience Live at Joshua Tree apart from an almost unnoticeable clarinet line that Hutchings plays. This studio recording also misses some of that sparkle that jazz has when played live which makes the Joshua Tree version so special.
Another is the overly experimental ‘Turquoise Galaxy’. Whilst bringing synth into jazz is nothing new, with The Comet is Coming a prime example of how well this combination works, it isn’t one of Dayes’ best-known skills and it shows as he tries to take on this sub-genre of ‘Cosmic’-jazz. The track isn’t bad, but it’s just there not offering much. Definitely cuttable, especially when you consider that later down the line ‘Chasing the Drum’ scratches the jazz-synth itch with much more effect and flair.
But these are hyper-criticisms of what is generally a superb album. Dayes’s ability to raise other artists are on full display throughout, allowing both featured artists and members of his band to have their moments to shine as much as he gives himself time in the spotlight. There is a wealth of great performances to enjoy over the expanse of what is inherently a deeply personal album. Not just that it’s Dayes’ first solo venture, but through how family has influenced the whole work.
Whilst Dayes’ daughter, Bahia, is heard on ‘The Light’, the album ends with the voice of Barbara Hicks, Dayes’ mother who passed in 2015, instructing yoga as the music fades away on the calming final track ‘Cowrie Charms’, which brings the generational loop, and a crash course of the landscape of modern jazz, to a close.
A fantastic album, with influences from across the musical spectra, Black Classical Music shows how talented Yussef Dayes is in his own right as a both a drummer and a bandleader. It excels at balancing both style and energy throughout, whilst managing to maintain a distinctive feel. It’s a wonderful cross-section of UK jazz and with it coming off the back of one of biggest recognitions of the jazz talent that the UK has fostered, it feels as though Black Classical Music will be a seminal release for years to come.
8/10