Reverend Chris

FOUR out of FIVE STARS

Christopher Marsceill may be based in northwest Philadelphia, but a casual listener could just as easily believe it was Nashville or New Orleans—not just because he goes by Reverend Chris in polite company and otherwise, but because he and his amiable High Rollers band share a love for earthy horns and Dixie swing. This lineup's first recording @etude offers a fun melting pot of largely Southern gumbo with high camaraderie and high spirits.

The leader's mostly-electric piano makes a soft and sprightly bed for the horn duo to caper over while the shuffling rhythm players stomp their hearts out. New addition Thomas Razler on sax adds a dose of Philly soul in spots like the brightly bouncing "Gene Pullen," while Bart Miltenberger's trumpet brings us to the heart of N'awlins with dashes of creole and cabaret. Marsceill's time living in that town obviously left some permanent effects, judging by "Huddle House Honey"'s zoot-suit swagger or the ragtimey blues of "The Sun Is Gold" (not to mention the brief straightforward homage to Allen Toussaint). Touches of the French Quarter and Professor Longhair are never terribly far away.

Mostly there's little need to step up to the mike, though the Rev's light drawl occasionally adds to the old-time vibe in a charmingly low-key manner. For the most part he's happy to stick to the keys and let the band do what they do best. The High Rollers' friendly chemistry is palpable throughout. It's a recording that was made with everyone live in the same room, and there was no inclination to overthink or over-polish while letting the good times roll. The attitude of @etude is one of bright celebration; it all makes an invitingly upbeat listen from a sharp crew ready to carouse till the sun comes up.

Track Listing: @etude; Huddle House Honey; Gene Pullen; Allen Toussaint; Carpet Bagger's Blues; The Storm; The Sun Is Gold (When the Night Gets Old); Pretty Kitty Two-Step; Nowhere Bound Affair; Isla's Waltz; Look Where We Have Been; So Long Andromeda.
Personnel: "Reverend" Chris Marsceill: piano, vocals; Bart Miltenberger: trumpet, flugelhorn; Thomas Razler: saxophone; Tony Garlo: upright bass


; Rich Curtis: electric bass; Tony Green: drums; Chuck Lindsey: drums (1, 2, 5, 9); Julian Miltenberger: drums (4, 6).
Title: @etude | Year Released: 2017 | Record Label: Self Produced - All About Jazz

After 10 years of performing live jazz at the Tavern on the Hill, Chris Marsceill, better known on stage as “Rev. Chris,” certainly has a lot on which to look back. Though his regular performances on the piano with his band have made him a fixture of the Tavern, getting to that point was not the easiest of journeys.

Hailing from the Chestnut Hill/Erdenheim area, Marsceill relocated to Louisiana when he began school at Loyola University, New Orleans. Building on his trumpet lessons while attending Springfield Township High School, he performed with a number of different jazz singers and bands all across New Orleans.

After settling there, however, he was ultimately forced to come back to this area when Hurricane Katrina destroyed his home. While he and his current wife initially lived with his parents in Erdenheim, they were able to get a place of their own in Chestnut Hill.

Marsceill’s time at the Tavern began in 2007, which was also the same year in which he and his wife got married. As it so happened that a chance encounter would ultimately lead to a decade of performances.

“One of my coworkers at the time convinced me and a few others to go out for drinks at the Tavern,” Marsceill said. “While we were there, there was a guy who made a joke about an old English play, and I was the only one who understood the reference. He turned out to be one of the owners, John Hegan, and we ended up talking about how I wanted to get back into music. He then asked if I was interested in playing at the Tavern and just seeing how that would work out.”
In addition to his live performances, Marsceill also has a detailed discography of recorded jazz albums. While some of the recordings are done live at his performances, most are still made in a studio. Though this does allow for corrections to be made in a controlled environment, Marsceill definitely prefers the atmosphere of playing in front of a crowd.

“My favorite recordings are the live ones,” Marsceill explained. “There’s something about the energy of the audience – even if they hate you – that adds something to it. I’d rather keep a mistake instead of going back and fixing it, and you can’t really fix your mistakes when you’re live.”

One of the things that immediately stands out about Marsceill is that although “Rev” is part of his stage name, he is actually an official minster of the Universal Life Church, which offers instant paid ordinations. It may not be his actual job, but Marsceill has had the nickname for most of his life, dating back to his first job at a convenience store.

“My manager was a funny guy who put odd tasks together like filling out a money order and formally becoming an ordained reverend,” Marsceill said. “I didn’t think anything of it until I went to Loyola, where a lot of people had the same name. There was a retired Jesuit brother who had to keep track of all the guys in our hall. One night it came out that I was ordained and so he gave me the nickname “Rev. Chris.” The fact that my last name has never been spelled right didn’t hurt in it catching on.”

Having performed at the Tavern for a decade now, Marsceill appears pretty comfortable with sticking around for the foreseeable future. Given that making music is still a full-time job for him, it stands to reason that he would want to keep this consistency going.

“Unless people stop showing up to the Tavern, I don’t see any kind of end date,” Marsceill predicted. “The people who come to the shows are my favorite part of performing, and there are some residents who are there like clockwork. I met one couple whose daughter had gone off to college, and two years later I was asked to play at her wedding.”

To celebrate Rev. Chris’ anniversary, the Tavern will be putting on a “Jammiversary” performance, where musicians will be encouraged to come up and play alongside Marsceill. It will be held on Friday, July 28, from 9 to 11 p.m.

For more information about Marsceill and his music, visit www.plebo.org. - Chestnut Hill Local

Some very good straight ahead modern jazz from a trio of young musicians who obviously know what they’re doing. The opening tunes, “Green Dolphin Street,” “If I Were A Bell,” “Autumn Leaves,” make it clear where these guys are coming from. This was familiar territory for the likes of Miles Davis, John Coltrane, and other name bop stars in the ’60s and these three have clearly listened to the masters and paid attention. In fact, their sound is quite reminiscent of the piano, bass, and drum trios from that era. What’s unusual is that this group can be heard at Fritzel’s on Bourbon Street, usually associated with nothing else but traditional New Orleans jazz. It’s a tribute to leader Bradford Truby that he can comfortably fit into both musical styles. Bryan Besse is one of a handful of New Orleans drummers who do the kind of accented rhythms we usually associate with folks like Max Roach and places like New York. Chris Marshall on the keyboards has the kind of funky feel in his playing that the boppers were just beginning to experiment with and that James Booker brought to fruition. All in all, this is an excellent debut for some new additions to the local scene from whom I hope we’ll hear a great deal more. - OffBeat Magazine

ALMOST FAMOUS

Some of the unsung stars of the current Philly music scene get some well-deserved recognition this month at a photography documentary exhibit called "Celebrate Philadelphia Performers." Curated by Sabina Clarke and featuring photos by Katharine Gilbert, the display showcases the diversity of musical styles being practiced by our local artists. Among them is jazz singer Joanna Pascale, a graduate of Philadelphia's Performing Arts High School and Temple University, who channels Billie Holiday, Carmen McRae and Sarah Vaughan for inspiration.

Central Library, 1901 Vine St., West-Wing Gallery, 9 a.m.-9 p.m. Mon.-Thur., 9 a.m.-6 p.m. Fri., 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Sat., 1-5 p.m. Sun., through Nov. 27. Free. http://bit.ly/p2KrRi - Philadelphia Daily News

January 28, 2010

Last summer, as nearly everyone was lining up to buy the remastered reissues of the Beatles back catalogue, local piano fixture, Reverend Chris Marsceill was conceiving a one-time performance of Beatles classics at Tavern on the Hill that he would release as a live album.



Marsceill, who may be the busiest musician in Chestnut Hill — he plays solo and in several different combos — is a Chestnut Hill area native and Springfield Township High School grad who moved back after his New Orleans home was obliterated in Hurricane Katrina. The 29-year-old has been playing piano since he was six.

But, Reverend Chris (his stage name; he is not an ordained minister) has stuck primarily with jazz. He studied jazz performance at Loyola University in New Orleans, so the Beatles were not necessarily an obvious fit for him.

“It was interesting to me as a guy with a jazz background,” Marsceill said in a recent interview. “I don’t play many Beatles songs. Some of them I’d never even heard, like 'Rain,' for example.”

To produce the live album, Chris thought of doing a show in conjunction with the release. He had a plan to perform three sets of songs with an upright bass player and a percussionist and to have local recording engineer Jason Fifield, who often plays bass with Chris, record the performance.

Once he had the show booked, Marsceill prepared for it quickly. “I worked out the arrangements on my own,” he said. “The bassist and I got together four times. The percussionist? We never got together. We had to laugh. He said , ‘I feel more comfortable going in not knowing anything.’”

The document of that Sept. 12 performance, “Fool on the Hill, “ is now available, both at Chestnut Hill’s Hideaway Music and on iTunes. The album cover is a really nice-looking classic Blue Note-style cover featuring a green-tinted black and white photo of Marsceill at the keyboard. It’s a 15-song collection of Beatles’ classics, from “Magical Mystery Tour” and “Lady Madonna” to “Come Together” and “Here Comes the Sun.”

Each song is a live performance. Marsceill recruited upright bass player Tony Garro and percussionist Gregory Morgan — credited with playing djembe, dumbeck, bongos, shakers, cowbells, washboard, cymbals and tambourine. Local songstress Katie Drake cameos on “Come Together” with a strong vocal performance.

Throughout the performance, Marsceill’s energy is high. The playing on the CD by all is really quite good, particularly for a live album. Marsceill’s arrangements are lively and inventive. His vocals are at first a bit shaky, but they really warm up by the third song, “Lady Madonna.”

“[The show] was fun,” he said. “It was different; you know the place was packed with people.”

That crowd can be heard a little. Fifield’s recording is clean with minimal background bleed into the microphones he used — particularly when they cheer as Marsceill ramps up a favorite like “Something” or “Come Together.” A little more room ambience might have been nice to hear, but the high energy of the musicians involved permeates the album. For a fun local document and some nice recordings of Beatles standards, “Fool on the Hill” is well worth a spin.

“Fool on the Hill” can be physically purchased at Hideaway Music, 8612 Germantown Ave. - Chestnut Hill Local

Some very good straight ahead modern jazz from a trio of young musicians who obviously know what they’re doing. The opening tunes, “Green Dolphin Street,” “If I Were A Bell,” “Autumn Leaves,” make it clear where these guys are coming from. This was familiar territory for the likes of Miles Davis, John Coltrane, and other name bop stars in the ’60s and these three have clearly listened to the masters and paid attention. In fact, their sound is quite reminiscent of the piano, bass, and drum trios from that era. What’s unusual is that this group can be heard at Fritzel’s on Bourbon Street, usually associated with nothing else but traditional New Orleans jazz. It’s a tribute to leader Bradford Truby that he can comfortably fit into both musical styles. Bryan Besse is one of a handful of New Orleans drummers who do the kind of accented rhythms we usually associate with folks like Max Roach and places like New York. Chris Marshall on the keyboards has the kind of funky feel in his playing that the boppers were just beginning to experiment with and that James Booker brought to fruition. All in all, this is an excellent debut for some new additions to the local scene from whom I hope we’ll hear a great deal more. - OffBeat Magazine

ALMOST FAMOUS

Some of the unsung stars of the current Philly music scene get some well-deserved recognition this month at a photography documentary exhibit called "Celebrate Philadelphia Performers." Curated by Sabina Clarke and featuring photos by Katharine Gilbert, the display showcases the diversity of musical styles being practiced by our local artists. Among them is jazz singer Joanna Pascale, a graduate of Philadelphia's Performing Arts High School and Temple University, who channels Billie Holiday, Carmen McRae and Sarah Vaughan for inspiration.

Central Library, 1901 Vine St., West-Wing Gallery, 9 a.m.-9 p.m. Mon.-Thur., 9 a.m.-6 p.m. Fri., 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Sat., 1-5 p.m. Sun., through Nov. 27. Free. http://bit.ly/p2KrRi - Philadelphia Daily News