Down the Middle

Haven't really touched on mainstream jazz much lately, not since the Smoke Sessions CDs for Harold Mabern and Vincent Herring. So here's a group of four recent purchases that have tickled my fancy and caught my ear. All are highly recommended.

What can be more mainstream or better than Oscar Peterson and Ben Webster, "During this Time" (Art of the Groove 2014), especially when Peterson's trio includes Tony Inzalaco on percussion and the inestimable Niels-Henning Orsted Pedersen (NHOP) on bass. this set was taken a live recording at the 84th NDR Jazz Workshop in December of 1972, sadly just a few months before Webster passed away in Amsterdam. It's a nice set, well-recorded and featuring both a CD and DVD of the event. The songs include "Perdido", "For All We Know", "Cotton Tail" and "In a Mellow Tone" among others, and if Webster's sound is just a tad less dynamic than on earlier sets, he is still great, while Peterson is as good as ever and NHOP excels.

Scott Hamilton Quartet, "Dean Street Nights" (Woodville Records 2014) is a live showcase from Pizza Express in London and features John Pearce on piano, Dave Green on bass, and Steve Brown on drums. Hamilton's play is from the direct line of which Webster was one of the kings; his sound is large, mellow, and unforced, and his roots are and always have been in the mainstream tradition. The seven pieces attest to his love of the standards, featuring "Cherokee, "Spring Can Really Hang You Up the Most", and "Sweet and Lovely" among them, but the two real standouts are "Jitterbug Waltz" and Hamilton's own "Zoot's Blues", an homage to another of Hamilton's iconic heroes.

Sticking with the saxophones, there's a new one from one of the young lions -- Javon Jackson, "Expression" (Smoke Sessions 2014), a third live performance and another outstanding set. Jackson has incredible support here from Orrin Evans on piano, Corcoran Holt on bass, and McClenty Hunter on drums. Smoke is a great setting for jazz and that comes through in the excellent sound, the dynamic play, and grateful audience response to this set of ten songs. Jackson is strong on a set of standards, covers from some great jazz players like Wayne Shorter and George Cables, and five of his own tunes. His ballad to his late cousin "Lelia" is a standout, but then so are tunes like "88 Strong" dedicated to McCoy Tyner as well as the standard "When I Fall in Love." The Smoke Sessions label is producing some standout live jazz -- this is the third this year, with another set for April under the leadership of David Hazeltine.

Bruce Barth, "Daybreak" (Savant 2014) is another hit in a long line of hits for the veteran pianist. His group includes Steve Nelson on vibes, Terell Stafford on trumpet and flugelhorn, Vincente Archer on bass, and Montez Coleman on drums. Barth compose 7 of the 10 pieces and the others are "Triste" by Jobim, "In the Still of the Night" by Cole Porter, and "So Tender" by Keith Jarrett. Stafford and Barth are unaccompanied on "So Tender" and luxuriate in the beautiful melody. The trio of Barth, Archer, and Coleman impress on the Jobim opener, and Nelson and Barth are special on "In the Still of the Night" which opens with a bouncy lead from Nelson. But that's just three pieces, the remaining 7 each have their moments in the sun as well.

Two Big Brawny Tenors

Two new CDs to report on by two veteran tenor players. The first is "Lower East Side" (Posi-Tone 2013) by Ehud Asherie with Harry Allen, and the second "Remembering Billie" (Blue Dutchess 2013) by Scott Hamilton. Both are exactly what you would expect given the players and titles -- classic compositions, smoothly swinging (swung?) sounds, and tight arrangements. Nothing fancy, just meat and potatoes for those who love classic sounds.

"Lower East Side"  follows on the heels of the duo's collaboration on "Upper West Side" (Posi-Tone 2011) and is strictly a duo -- no bass or drum support -- by two players whose classic sound enriches such songs as "Hey There" by Adler and Ross, "Some Other Time" by Leonard Bernstein, and "Always" by Irving Berlin. Allen has a big, round and luscious sound reminiscent of Ben Webster or of his contemporary Houson Person, and Asherie the touch and love of the classic pianism of the swing era. Together they produce a sound that is wonderfully romantic, nostalgic at times but never stale, and relaxing  to hear.

"Remembering Billie" is a tribute to the songs of Billie Holiday, featuring Scott Hamilton with a trio of Tim Ray on piano, Dave Zinno on bass, and Jim Gwinn on drums, none a name I recognized but clearly a capable bunch in support of Hamilton's wonderously large tenor sound. Hamilton's an old pro at taking classic tunes and producing marvellously listenable albums without ever being boring. He is clearly the featured player here, though the others take some nice turns, and Hamilton produces. "Them There Eyes" is taken up-tempo and is fiery and fun, "God Bless the Child" as wonderfully burnished as one would expect, and elsewhere there are nice turns on tunes like "When You're Smiling" and "Good Morning Heartache." Finally, Blue Dutchess is the label of Duke Robillard and he contributes his accoustic guitar play on two tunes -- "Fooling Myself" and "I'll Never be the Same."

Two great straight-ahead albums.

Two Down the Middle For You

Picked up two great CDs yesterday that are both really worth hearing and both grounded solidly in the tradition of hard bop and swing.

The first is drummer Winard Harper's "Coexist" (Jazz Legacy Productions (JLP) 2012) with his sextet, called the Jeli Posse. The word jeli is West African and reflects Harper's interest in African traditions and in particular African drumming. A jeli, sometimes called a griot, is a storyteller, praise singer, poet and musician -- the repository of oral history for his community. Harper is that, a musician consumed with the history of jazz drumming as well as the traditions of African drumming, and he is equally strong on the drum set as well as on the West African balafon, a marimba-like instrument. His influences are many -- the JLP website lists Clifford Brown, Max Roach, Jackie McLean, Cannonball Adderley, Dr. Billy Taylor, Art Blakey and Billy Higgins but there are many others he has learned from and played with during his career. For example, Harper's first major playing date was with Dexter Gordon in 1982, and shortly thereafter he played with Johnny Griffin.

The African influence over this CD can be heard on selected pieces through the drumset and use of some african rhythm instruments, but in truth this CD hews most closely to the Blue Note tradition on the 50s, with its selection of songs, playing styles, groupings and composition. And what a group this is, a roster of some of the best and brightest new talent. Bruce Harper plays trumpet and flugelhorn, Jovan Alexandre is on tenor, Michael Dease is on trombone, Roy Assaf on piano, Stephen Porter handles bass, and three musicians handle percussion, bongos, talking drums, and ddjembe --- Abdou Mboup, Alioune Faye, and Jean Marie. And then there are the guests, the best known being Frank Wess on flute for a wonderfully romantic take on "In a Sentimental Mood", and Sharel Cassity, the young and upcoming sax player. Picking highlights is difficult, but the soulful piano and muted trumpet on "Amazing Grace" is transformative, and "Jeli Posse" a rhythmic wonder. And I cannot keep from bopping and smiling in my seat when I hear the romp through "Hard Times." Whether new song or old, the group cooks together to produce wonderful results, with outstanding soloing by each player and tight ensemble play.  This is one for those steeped in the traditions of Art Blakely and his Jazz Messengers an all the rest of the hard bop sounds of the 50s and 60s.

Even more traditional are the sounds of Harry Allen and Scott Hamilton on "'Round Midnight" (Challenge Records 2012). No challenges to the ear here, just some beautiful play by two of the most traditional saxaphonists of our times, backed by the equally traditional play of Rossano Sportiello, a young pianist from Italy who has been making a name for himself recently on Arbors (and to me a man who is a dead ringer for the young Robin Williams); Joel Forbes on bass; and Chuck Riggs on drums. Whether playing in unison or trading solos, the two sax players are terrific, with large roounded tones, thoughtful improvisations, and a lot of toe-tapping beats. Take "Flight of the Foo Birds" , a bouncy mid-tempo romp that sets a smile on the face, or the standard "My Melancholy Baby" which harkens back to the days of swing with the ensemble play, rhythmic timekeeping of the bass and drums, and light touch of Sportiello, who has many a fine solo herein. These are men who are following in the grand traditions of their predecessors, which to some may sound boring, but could never be so in the hands of these masters. Ballads and mid-tempo romps, the players find new phrases to liven the action, and are bringing along Sportiello as a first rate up and coming traditionalist as well. Hamilton and Allen are a reincarmation of the days of Al and Zoot, Johnny and Eddie "Lockjaw", and Sonny and Gene. A masterpiece of traditional jazz.

The "Art Trip" (Woodville Records 2012)

Born in England in 1959, Alan Barnes attended the Leeds College of Music, graduating in 1980 after studies on the saxophone, woodwinds, and in arranging.  After playing with a number of orchestras, he recorded his first CD as co-leader with Tommy Whittle in 1985, "Straight Eight" and first as leader  in 1987, "Affiliation."  In 1988 Barnes joined the Humphrey Lyttelton band (through 1992), and during the same period he led the Pizza Express Modern Jazz Sextet (through 1997) with Gerald Presencer and Dave O’Higgins. He has since recorded many times with a wide range of players, such as Warren Vache, Ken Peplowski, David Newton, Harry Allen, Tony Coe, Scott Hamilton, and Greg Abate. With a band with Don Weller,  he recorded a live album "Cannonball", which was awarded album of the year in the 2001 British Jazz Awards. In the same year he received the BBC Jazz Instrumentalist of the Year award, which he won again in 2006.

In 2003, Barnes founded the Woodville Records label, on which this latest CD, "The Art Trip" (Woodville 2012)appears. The disc honors the career, writing and recordings of altoist Art Pepper, and Barnes plays exclusively on that saxophone, along with Craig Milverton on piano, Al Swainger on bass, and Nick Millward on drums. Barnes out front of this rhytmn section is the focus of this recording, and he lives up to his honoree's memory on thirteen terrific melodies. However, Al Swainger on bass has some particularly audacious solos, as heard for example on "Straight Life" and "Las Curevas de Mario", and sets a great underpinning for the music along with the swinging Millward on drums. As befits Pepper, Barnes has taken songs from Pepper's early and late periods, emphasizing the upbeat and free play of his early triumphs along with the more moody, expressive play of his later years after his long years of drug and alcohol addiction. As Barnes says in his notes: "Art's compositions should be part of any jazz study syllabus. The up-tempo numbers are very witty, articulate and hip, often based on the chord sequences of standards. His ballads arae always beautiful vehicles for expression while his laating and groove tunes are timeless..." 

Alan Barnes has created a great set of songs that stand out as wonderful examples of Pepper's writing and playing style without being slavish to the sound. Barnes uses a nice, full and round tone throughout, while his bandmates find plenty of space to provide their own solos.

Barnes is a terrific listen. Once you get to know him, you can try some other fine CDs -- "Hi-Ya"(Woodville 2010), with Scott Hamilton on tenor is a tribute to the music of Johnny Hodges; and "Birds of a Feather" (Woodville 2007) with Greg Abate are two in my collection that I enjoy regularly.