Breathing Space

...an assured and auspicious debut, a fine set in the classic piano trio mode.
Dan McClenaghan, All About Jazz

Exploring music from a modern perspective while maintaining an emphasis on melodic improvisation and a groove firmly rooted in the tradition, Chicago pianist Ben Paterson's debut recording "Breathing Space," makes a bold statement as to why he is a highly regarded fixture at all of Chicago's jazz clubs and a regular in the band of tenor legend, Von Freeman. Ben draws from his influences of Bill Evans, Ahmad Jamal, and Oscar Peterson to create a swinging group sound with two of Chicago's finest, like-minded young musicians, Jake Vinsel and Jon Deitemyer.

Production Info:

Recorded Feb. 26th and 28th, 2007 at
Victorian Recording Studios in Barrington, IL
Engineered and mixed by Brian Schwab
Mastered by Danny Leake / Urban Guerilla Engineers
Photos by Joe Martinez, Jr.
Cover design by John Bishop

Reviews of Breathing Space

All Music Guide (Scott Yanow)
Based in Chicago, pianist Ben Paterson and his trio with bassist Jake Vinsel and drummer Jon Deitemyer perform seven standards and two originals on Breathing Space in a conventional but fresh manner. Paterson's trio is tied to the tradition of Bill Evans, Ahmad Jamal and other groups that emphasize subtle and intuitive communication between the mus ...

Bop 'n Dick's 10 Picks (Dick Crockett)
A young trio from Chicago jams to the jazz classics. Ben Paterson has that classic style with his own style, imbued with Chicago jazz lore. Reflections of Oscar Peterson as in ?Whisper Not ,? Other ethers from this group, musings of Junior Mance and Wynton Kelly. The rest of the trio John Deitemyer, drums and Jake Vinsel, bass are proactive and fi ...

All About Jazz (Dan McClenaghan)
If Ben Paterson and his trio had come along in a different time, they might have been tagged by Miles Davis as his backing band. In the mid-fifties, Davis was searching for an Ahmad Jamal sound, and settled in with Red Garland in the piano chair to fill that spot. Buoyant swing with the ability to segue into interludes of the light, sparkling touch ...

Jazz Society of Oregon (George Fendel)
Hey, Origin Records ? don?t stop with just one CD by Ben Paterson and his trio. Origin gives us no indication where Ben Paterson comes from, but I can tell you that musically, he comes from the long and honored tradition of piano cats with great chops. Paterson, who looks like a youngster from the photo, plays with authority; understands the piano ...

Cadence, Jan-Mar 2008 (Larry Hollis)
Although they don't receive the attention that the more flamboyant often do, there's a type of Jazz musician I like to call the tradition-keepers that constantly keep the embers glowing around the root forms of this music. I wouldn't necessarily label the Ben Paterson Trio as retro but there is no denying that they are at the very least conventiona ...

Chicago Jazz (Paul Abella)
Pianist Ben Paterson might be relatively new to Chicago's jazz scene (he arrived in 2004), but he hasn't wasted any time getting noticed by many of the people in the know around the town. He's played with Chicago's cream of the crop, from blues man Dave Specter, to singer Elaine Dame, to avant-garde cats like Ernest Dawkins. This kid has made his w ...

Jazz Review (Ron Bierman)
This is a solid, straight-ahead piano trio in a well-chosen program. They play two originals and seven fine, but far from overworked standards. The arrangements are fresh sounding. The playing ranges from gently appealing on the old pop standard "I wish I Knew" to hard driving on Gigi Gryce's "Hymn of the Orient." These Chicago-based musicians are ...