Lyn's Une - Alyn Cosker - Jazz Journal     07 October 2009 - Jazz Journal - Fred Grand

Young Scottish drummer and composer Alyn Cosker has been burning a bright trail across northern skies for several years now. Coming to prominence under Tommy Smith's watchful gaze, his Elvin-like propulsion of the saxophonist's "Forbidden Fruit" marked his card with me. Catching him standing in for Paolo Vinaccia in Arild Andersen's trio at last year's Edinburgh Jazz Festival offered even greater insight into his talents, but the sometimes not so subtle hints of his parallel career in rock music found on this Linn Records debut was almost as surprising as its title (a typo of "Alyn's Tune").

Given such genre-spanning interests, it is not so surprising that the metier of "Lyn's Une" is jazz-rock fusion. Cosker's Weckl/Gadd matrix probably won't satisfy the purist, but Hamilton's post Jaco electric bass and Dunsmuir's Scofield-esque guitar have much to recommend them and are the musical foundations on which th coterie of guests stand. Twitter and Bisted is the one occasion where the entire cast join forces, the acerbic Towndrow and fleet Quigley comfortably holding their own amongst more seasoned guests. Rebello's cameos are as elegant as ever, particularly the stunning dedication to the late Bheki Mseleku, whilst Smith is breathlessly exhilarating on the opening Oh Dear, complete with tricky 9/8 time signature and filigree paradiddles. The saxophonist leaves an indelible stamp both with a slew of passionate solos and also Cosker's compositional style.

Only on the tender ballads Don't Forget Me and Unannounced, and the country-inflected When Autumn Comes (featuring SNJO vocalist Maureen McMullan), does the backbeat let up sufficiently for some welcome space to open out. If I have a gripe with "Lyn's Une" then it lies with its high-octane burn and limit-pushing duration, A shorter better-balanced statement would have packed a more powerful punch, through Cosker's smart compositions and Rebello and Smith's solos comfortably put it above technically accomplished but nondescript fusion. "Lyn's Une" may ultimately enjoy a relatively ephemeral shelf life, but Cosker remains on course for greater things. Despite my reservations, I look forward to his next batch of "unes" with some anticipation.

Lyn's Une - Alyn Cosker - SoundStage.com   05 October 2009 - SoundStage.com - Rad Bennett

Though Linn's jazz catalog has relied largely on vocalists, you'll also find some choice instrumental groups. On one of the latest, Lyn's Une, young Scottish drummer Alyn Cosker fronts a seven-man ensemble, playing all original tunes except for the final track, "When Autumn Comes," co-written with singer Maureen McMullan. McMullan also arranged an introduction to track five, "Smiling Down," on which her lovely voice is multi-tracked to produce some downright ethereal harmonies. Throughout the set, Cosker displays huge amounts of energy, a vivid imagination, and a reluctance to settle into any one style. His pieces encompass a wide range of styles, including late-night bar jazz ("Oh Dear"), smoky ballads ("Don't Forget Me"), laidback swing ("Lyn's Une"), funk ("Twitter and Bisted), lazy-day ballads ("Unannounced"), and breezy soul strut ("Straight Through Boogaloo"). Cosker and his excellent sidemen nail each style, making it sound natural and easy, like the style is all theirs for the moment. The ensemble is Cosker's trio (Cosker on drums, David Dunsmuir on guitar, and Ross Hamilton on bass) joined by guests Jason Rebello (piano), Paul Towndrow (soprano and alto saxophone), Tommy Smith (tenor saxophone), Ryan Quigley (trumpet), and Maureen McMullan (vocals). Linn engineers have given the group a nicely focused, open-sounding recording that perfectly balances the players against one another. Like the new Claire Martin disc, the recording is available as a hybrid multichannel SACD (Linn AKD 338) and in various advanced-resolution downloads.

Lyn's Une - Alyn Cosker - O's Place Jazz  24 August 2009 - O's Place Jazz - D. Oscar Groomes

We love live drums (vs. electronic) and Cosker is one of the best drummers on the contemporary jazz scene. He put together a set of 12 tunes, a mix of mostly funky fusion with a couple of vocals led by Maureen McMullan. Cosker wrote arranged and produced all of the music and collaborated with McMullan on the vocal tracks. We enjoyed the focus on drums on "Logan's Slogans", a swinging syncopated number and the brass blends on "Twitter and Bisted". Alyn also does a fine job of surfacing his band, especially guitarist David Dunsmuir and Tommy Smith (sax). The program includes racy tunes like "That's The Ticket", the reflective "Smiling Down Introduction" and the mellow title track making it a well-rounded set. Our favorite track is "Bheki" dedicated to the late South African pianist Bheki Mseleku.

Lyn's Une - Alyn Cosker - Audio Video Club of Atlanta 03 August 2009 - Audio Video Club of Atlanta - Phil Muse

Lyn's Une is the title of an engaging jazz album by drummer Alyn Cosker and a collection of friends who are right on the beam with his exciting, risk-taking style. They include: Ross Hamilton, bass; Jason Rebello, piano; David Dunsmuir, guitar; Paul Towndrow, soprano & alto sax; Tommy Smith, tenor sax; and Brian Quigley, trumpet. On the final track, vocalist Maureen McMullan signs in with a beautiful ballad, "When Autumn Comes," which she wrote expressly for this album. She's also heard in a wordless intro to "Smiling Down."

The album takes its curious title from a keying mistake in the Sibelius program that  Alyn's dad used to set down the score of Track 7. It was originally supposed to "Alyn's Tune," but the artist liked the typo so much he decided to leave it. That says something for Alyn Cosker: he's never afraid to innovate. His playing is punchy, energetic, bluesy, and funky, filled with asymmetrical rhythms and cross-rhythms. Alyn sets the beat for the trio that includes Dunsmuir and Hamilton, and the others join in with their own creative contributions. The results are often highly inventive and inspiring, and always intriguing. If you have to give a name to the style of the album as a whole, you might call it "fusion," though the term has been known to set my teeth on edge. Well, if this be fusion, let's make the most of it, say I.

The whole septet is heard only once on this album, in "Twitter and Bisted" (a pun on a well-known Scottish ale), in which all hands pounce into a brew of funk-and-groove that's very tasty indeed. The temperature rises a bit here, but such is the cohesion of the group that it all seems as inevitable as falling in love. I love those unison reeds and Quigley's blazing trumpet, with Cosker and Rebello providing the driving force behind a piece that shows just how much pure fun a jazz ensemble can be.

Cosker shows his penchant for tricky time signatures as early as early as Track 1, "Oh Dear," which presumably applies to the B section in 9 /8. With the exception of the afore-mentioned final track, "When Autumn comes," which McMullan wrote, all the tunes were penned by Cosker himself. Other tracks include "Logan's Slogans," a bit of gritty funk that Alyn dedicates to his old music teacher, Jack Logan; "Don't forget me," a gentle ballad that provides a showcase for the talents of Smith, Dunsmuir and Hamilton; "Smiling Down," a songlike piece dedicated to Alyn's late nephew; and "That's the Ticket," an invigorating, high-energy excursion for the trio of Cosker, Dunsmuir and Hamilton.

"Bheki" is an eloquent tribute to the late South African pianist Bheki Mseleku. It calls forth big-time contributions from Quigley, Rebello, and Smith. "Unannounced," which Alyn describes as an evocation of all the little surprises in  life that seem to come from nowhere, is a wistfully beautiful tune, adding appropriate commentary by Rebello and Dunsmuir to Alyn's sensitive playing. "Straight Through Boogaloo" gives the basic drums/guitar/bass trio no end of tricky rhythms and odd meters to have fun with.

I note in passing that this is Alyn Cosker's debut album, and that he was runner-up for "Best Drummer" in the Scottish Jazz Awards. I shudder to think who the prize winner was. He must be a veritable King Kong on the drums!

Lyn's Une - Alyn Cosker - Jazzwise  22 July 2009 - Jazzwise - Robert Shore

Young Scottish drummer Cokser has both wit and passion in his playing and, in Scottish music writer Rob Adams' formulation, technically he's already an acknowledged "prince of paradiddles...rim-shot royalty". On this impressive debut as leader, he displays a wide range of influences. The music is largely built around his regular touring trio of drums-guitar-bass, which shows obvious affinities with the sound world of John Scofield: sharp-edged blues-funk is one of the key modes here. But the presence of Smith really opens the music out, and there is some wonderfully expansive soloing over Cosker's soon-to-be-trademark (I suspect) penchant for tricky time signatures. ‘Bheki' is a gorgeously cool and soulfully assured tribute to the recently deceased South African pianist Bheki Mseleku, while closing ballad ‘When Autumn Comes' - written with and sung by McMullan - strikes a fine balance between folksy open-heartedness and jazz cunning.

Lyn's Une - Alyn Cosker - Jazz Notes (York Press) 23 July 2009 - Jazz Notes (York Press) - Ron Burnett

Alyn Cosker has been the drummer with the Scottish National Jazz Orchestra for four years and he also features on Tommy Smith's latest album, Forbidden Fruit. Smith repays the favour by playing on Cosker's debut, Lyn's Une (Linn Records) and turns in some powerful tenor saxophone on the opening track, Oh Dear (so named for the complex 9/8 rhythm on one section).

Most tracks feature the virtuoso guitar of David Dunsmuir alongside the saxophone, recalling the funk/rock-influenced sounds of the Morrisey Mullen Band. At other times the link is to John Mclaughlin and the ballad sound of Pat Metheny on such gentle tunes as Don't Forget Me and Unannounced.

Track seven, the title tune, introduces a different group sound with Jason Rebello (piano) and Paul Towndrow (soprano/alto saxophone) and a light, Latin feel.

By track eight, Twitter And Bisted, trumpeter Ryan Quigley swells the band to a full-throated seven piece, continuing on to Bheki, a tribute to the late South African pianist Bheki Mseleku.

Cosker handles compositions and playing for the larger ensemble with the same versatility as the small group, evidence of his past collaborations with the various talents of Lee Konitz, Courtney Pine, David Newton, Warren Vache and Tim Garland.

Linn Records has a reputation for choosing outstanding musicians and the addition of Alyn Cosker to their catalogue will win a lot of new friends. Probably the best drummer you have never heard of, Cosker is the outstanding composer/arranger of all 12 tracks as well as being a superb drummer. 

Lyn's Une - Alyn Cosker - Vortex Website 14 July 2009 - Vortex Website

Courtney Pine is quoted on the sleeve of this album, describing Alyn Cosker as 'a fantastic drummer who plays with a lot of heart, swing and passion', and the twelve tracks on it all thoroughly justify this praise.

Cosker's bandmates - saxophonists Tommy Smith and Paul Towndrow, trumpeter Ryan Quigley, pianist Jason Rebello, guitarist David Dunsmuir and bassist Ross Hamilton - are all discernibly energised by the the leader/composer's drive, bristling power and precision, Smith contributing a characteristically robust solo to 'Bheki' (a tribute to the late Bheki Mseleku) and Dunsmuir bringing the best of jazz/rock punch and flair to the likes of 'That's the Ticket', but what really impresses throughout this enjoyably varied album is the sheer quality of Cosker's writing.

Breezily accessible as most of his material is, it is none the less musicianly for that, and whether he's providing funky fusion platforms for Dunsmuir et al., hard-swinging jazz tunes for his hornmen or the odd memorable ballad ('Unannounced' a particular highlight), Cosker demonstrates great taste and discernment as well as vibrant and infectious power.

He himself lists Buddy Rich and Elvin Jones, as well as Steve Gadd and Jeff Porcaro, among his drumming influences, and he emulates these high-energy, inspirational figures all through Lyn's Une (which closes with an attractive song, written and performed by Maureen McMullan), providing in the process an all-round view of a singular, versatile drumming/composing talent.