1991 · Album
Standard Time, Volume 2: Intimacy Calling
Recorded 1990 · Columbia Records
Intimate Standards at the Peak of Marsalis's Powers
Marsalis revisits the jazz songbook with restraint and genuine affection, letting melodies breathe.
By 1990, Wynton Marsalis had already spent a decade proving himself one of jazz's most technically gifted trumpeters. Standard Time, Vol. 2: Intimacy Calling continues the series he'd started with the first volume, returning to the American songbook with a focus on slower tempos and close listening. There's no flash here—no high notes thrown around for show. Instead, Marsalis treats these standards the way a good musician should: as songs with real melody and real emotional weight. He plays them straight, which means you hear the tune clearly and you hear what he's doing with it.
What makes this volume different from other standard-time recordings is its pace. These are ballads and mid-tempo pieces where silence matters as much as sound. Marsalis's tone is warm without being syrupy, and he seems interested in the architecture of each song rather than in demonstrating his range. The album reached number one on the Billboard Top Jazz Albums chart, which tells you it connected with listeners looking for something thoughtful rather than bombastic. It charted at number 112 on the Billboard 200, respectable for a straight-ahead jazz record in that era.
This isn't the album to start with if you want to hear what Marsalis can do technically—go elsewhere for that. But if you already respect his playing and want to hear him think carefully about melody and space, this is worth your time. It's solid work from someone at the height of his powers, doing what he set out to do without overselling it.
Who's playing
Reginald Vealbass
Marcus Robertspiano
Todd Williamstenor saxophone
Wessell Andersonalto saxophone
Wynton Marsalistrumpet
Herlin Rileydrums
Where next?
More by Wynton Marsalis
Hot House Flowers 1984
Black Codes (From The Underground) 1985
J Mood 1986
Standard Time Vol. 3: The Resolution Of Romance 1990
The musicians on this record
Their own records, close in time
