God Is A Drummer

God Is A Drummer is the new studio album by master drummer Trilok Gurtu. Throughout his illustrious career, master drummer and world music pioneer Gurtu has stood at the confluence of where Indian classical music, Western jazz and funk, African music, and Brazilian music meet. It's been part of his modus operandi for five decades - making music that defies easy categorization. On God Is A Drummer, his 20th recording as a leader, the uncommonly open-minded musician pays tribute to some fallen colleagues and role models who have guided and inspired him along the way. Leading his dynamic, Hamburg-based group of trumpeter Frederik Köster, trombonist Christophe Schweizer, Turkish-born keyboardist Sabri Tulug Tirpan, and electric bassist Jonathan Cuniado, Gurtu acknowledges the impact that legends like keyboardist and Weather Report co-founder Joe Zawinul, Brazilian percussionist Nana Vasconcelos, jazz drumming great Tony Williams, and his mother, the Indian classical singing star Shobha Gurtu, have made on his musical life. Dedicated to his own guru, Ranjit Maharaj, God Is A Drummer is a stunning showcase of matchless precision, dazzling solos, passionate vocals, percolating rhythms, and deep-rooted grooves. Regarding the title, the leader says, "I named it that because without the drummer, nothing will move. And without movement, the world will stop. The Earth rotates, which is movement. The waves in the ocean, the leaves falling from trees, people talking to each other?it's all movement, it's rhythm, it's energy. So, with every movement, I say, god is a drummer." Liner notes by Bill Milkowski - longstanding contributor to DownBeat and Jazzthing magazines.