''Little Motor People'' is the third album led by cellist

Hank Roberts Hank Roberts (born March 24, 1954, Terre Haute, Indiana) is an American jazz cellist and vocalist. He plays the electric cello, and his style is a mixture of rock, jazz, avant-garde, folk, and classical influences. He emerged with the downtown Ne ...

which was recorded in late 1992 and released on the JMT label.Shimada, T.
JMT label discography
accessed November 14, 2014

Reception

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All-Music Guide and AMG) is an American online database, online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on Musical artist, musicians and Mus ...

awarded the album 4 stars.Allmusic listing
accessed November 14, 2014 The

LA Times The ''Los Angeles Times'' is an American daily newspaper that began publishing in Los Angeles, California, in 1881. Based in the Greater Los Angeles city of El Segundo since 2018, it is the sixth-largest newspaper in the U.S. and the large ...

' Bill Kohlhaase noted "the highlight here is Roberts' five-part suite "Saturday/Sunday" with its acoustic sensibilities and smart interplay between Roberts, pianist Django Bates and percussionist Arto Tuncboyaciyan. Moving easily between jazz rhythms, tribal beats and classically influenced passages, the piece marks Roberts as a composer willing to overlook the usual boundaries between jazz and progressive music".Kohnlhaase, B.
LA Times Review
December 1, 1993

Track listing

''All compositions by Hank Roberts except as indicated'' # " Saturday/Sunday" - 18:58 # "

Over the Rainbow "Over the Rainbow", also known as "Somewhere Over the Rainbow", is a ballad by Harold Arlen with lyrics by Yip Harburg. It was written for the 1939 film '' The Wizard of Oz'', in which it was sung by actress Judy Garland in her starring role ...

" (

Harold Arlen Harold Arlen (born Hyman Arluck; February 15, 1905 – April 23, 1986) was an American composer of popular music, who composed over 500 songs, a number of which have become known worldwide. In addition to composing the songs for the 1939 film ' ...

Yip Harburg Edgar Yipsel Harburg (born Isidore Hochberg; April 8, 1896 – March 5, 1981) was an American popular song lyricist and librettist who worked with many well-known composers. He wrote the lyrics to the standards " Brother, Can You Spare a Dime?" (w ...

) - 4:30 # "Only Minutes Left" - 4:47 # " My Favourite Things" (

Oscar Hammerstein II Oscar Greeley Clendenning Hammerstein II (; July 12, 1895 – August 23, 1960) was an American lyricist, librettist, theatrical producer, and director in musical theater for nearly 40 years. He won eight Tony Awards and two Academy Award ...

Richard Rodgers Richard Charles Rodgers (June 28, 1902 – December 30, 1979) was an American Musical composition, composer who worked primarily in musical theater. With 43 Broadway theatre, Broadway musicals and over 900 songs to his credit, Rodgers wa ...

) - 3:19 # "Little Motor People" - 10:07 # "

Donna Lee "Donna Lee" is a jazz standard attributed to Charlie Parker, although Miles Davis has also claimed authorship. Written in A-flat, it is based on the chord changes of the jazz standard " (Back Home Again in) Indiana". Beginning with an unusual ha ...

" (

Charlie Parker Charles Parker Jr. (August 29, 1920 – March 12, 1955), nicknamed "Bird" or "Yardbird", was an American jazz Saxophone, saxophonist, bandleader, and composer. Parker was a highly influential soloist and leading figure in the development of beb ...

) - 3:04 # "Black as a Sunny Day" (Django Bates, Hank Roberts) - 2:33 # " Autumn Leaves" (

Joseph Kosma Joseph Kosma (22 October 19057 August 1969) was a Hungarian composer who immigrated to France. Biography Kosma was born József Kozma in Budapest, where his parents taught stenography and typing. He had a brother, Ákos. A maternal relative wa ...

Johnny Mercer John Herndon Mercer (November 18, 1909 – June 25, 1976) was an American lyricist, songwriter, and singer, as well as a record label executive who co-founded Capitol Records with music industry businessmen Buddy DeSylva and Wallichs Music Cit ...

Jacques Prévert Jacques Prévert (; 4 February 1900 – 11 April 1977) was a French poet and screenwriter. His poems became and remain popular in the French-speaking world, particularly in schools. His best-regarded films formed part of the Poetic realism, poetic ...

) - 5:29 # "30's Picnic" - 8:40

Personnel

- cello, vocals, jazz-a-phone fiddle *

Django Bates Django Bates (born Leon Bates, 2 October 1960) is a British jazz musician, composer, multi-instrumentalist, band leader and educator. He plays the piano, keyboards and the tenor horn. Bates has been described as "one of the most talented musici ...

- piano, synthesizer, tenor horn *

Arto Tunçboyacıyan Arto Sedraki Tunchboyachyan (; ; born August 4, 1957) is an Armenian American avant-garde folk and jazz multi-instrumentalist and singer of Armenian descent. He fronts his Armenian Navy Band group and is also a member of the instrumental quartet ...

- percussion, vocals

References

{{Authority control 1993 albums Hank Roberts albums JMT Records albums Winter & Winter Records albums