Snark and Reverb

My first thought when checking this album out was, “With a title like that, this album had better deliver!”  Kenny Garrett begins with a free jazz piece, “Countdown”.  Interestingly, my brain first linked this to a similar sound I’ve heard from a Sonny Rollins album, The Solo Album.  Of course there were differences, including drums.  (There is also the track “Like Sonny”, which I’ll go into later on.) But when the second track, “Equinox” started, my brain instantly linked onto The Coltrane Express, and what a smooth ride it was.  The drums, bass and thick guitar are so tight that they seem to act as a defibrillator, pushing and pulling Kenny forward and back in an organic (yet controlled) manner.

Garrett is able to capture from the start, the devices often exploited by Coltrane, in regards to instrument layering, tone, attack and timing.  At times he may actually play in the pocket better than Coltrane did in his studio recordings, in fact.  In “Liberia”, for example, this is seen in the way he holds onto a note just a little to long, and gives it a tremolo with his breath, causing the note to waiver around in the air like a leaf slowly descending, that’s taken too long to reach the ground.  The note goes sharp, and begins to play with dissonance.  Another device used is his choice of riff clusters.  Several times in the same song, Garrett applies a quick triple note section, with a fourth note held out longer, which becomes a call to the band to kick off into its next progression.  As he takes the lead, his playing in the highest octave has a pinch of distortion to the tone, and is echoed by the bass which allows its own distortion to come through slightly, caused by string ricochets and thumb pull-offs.  The cymbals don’t mimic the tone, but rather provide a smoother counterpoint, and are allowed to slowly fade off in the distance, similar to the early sustained notes from Garrett described earlier.  After the progression has made a few rounds, Garrett again makes use of the combination to call everybody back to the verse line of the song.  Its things like that which make this album a veritable clinic in the effect of nuance.

“Dear Lord” has Garrett honing in on the slow, tender wavering notes that were such an integral part of the Coltrane sound.  They find that elusive spot between firm confidence and expressive vulnerability.  The rest of the band follows his example.  The drums take on a softer quality that reminds me of Joe Morello’s playing on Time Out.  The cymbal crashes don’t sound like ricochets, morel like leaves hitting the surface of some remote pond.  Pat Metheny plays off this with soft chord work that is often held just slightly behind the beat with sustained chords and pauses.  The places he doesn’t play really help give Garrett an enhanced airy quality at times, and prevent the mix from becoming too saturated or complicated.  Garrett returns the favor, giving Metheny a solo spot, where the dark, murky guitar lines share the same floating quality.  As the song winds down, the band executes a very satisfying tempo decrease, and Garrett finishes out the piece with the same wavering tremolo quality he started the song with, just before the band returns to share the last sustained bar.

“Lonnie’s Lament” is probably the quintessential rain day sountrack.  The combination of Metheny’s open arpeggios, the sustained cymbal splashes of Brian Blade, and the soft sax tones give the track a beautifully somber atmosphere.  The chief solo spot is given to Metheny, who offers up the album’s only distorted-guitar tones which shift the style over into the progressive genre, sounding like something Al DiMeola would conjure up.  While it offers a change of pace, it may be too big a change for such an album.

Ironically, the next track is titled “After The Rain”.  Continuing with the somber atmosphere, this one plays with the balance of modal, dissonant lines and offsets them with exotic percussion and several different strings.  The track sounds vaguely middle eastern as a result.  The exotic world instruments remind this listener of Dead Can Dance.  Its seven and a half minutes of world-jazz with a kind of troubadour-like quality to the solos.

Next up is six minutes channeling Sonny Rollins.  “Like Sonny” returns to more chord-based rhythm and modal based leads which works quite well juxtaposed off of the free jazz heard just before.  Its a fairly straightforward track, as is “Pursuance”, so there’s not much else to note on those.

While listening to both “Alabama” and Garretts’ cover of “Giant Steps,” Coltrane’s episodic quality really seems to come through, and its a quality shared by Garretts’ peers as well, not limiting itself to saxophone.  This is as good a time as any to briefly touch upon the album’s sonic qualities.  In short, they are excellent.  The album is not overly compressed, bass heavy or treble heavy, etc.  It does justice to Garretts’ great sense of dynamics, which are perhaps the highlight of the album for me.  While he doesn’t have Coltrane’s same instinctive projection, he counters with one of the softest touches in tone I’ve encountered in jazz.  Its a wonderfully intoxicating listen.  Even with the dissonant quality to the closer, “Latifa.”

I for one have every intention of getting Garrett’s entire discography, and would not be surprised to find myself reviewing more of his albums.

Musicians:

Kenny Garrett - Saxophone
Pat Metheney - Guitar
Brian Blade - Drums
Rodney Whitaker - Bass

Songs:

1. Countdown
2. Equinox
3. Liberia
4. Dear Lord
5. Lonnie’s Lament
6. After The Rain
7. Like Sonny
8. Pursuance
9. Alabama
10. Giant Steps
11. Latifa

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Phil Upchurch’s Darkness, Darkness has quickly become my current favorite electric guitar-based instrumental album I own.  I decided to check out the album on a whim while admiring the cover art, which for me gives off a Houses Of The Holy vibe.  Perhaps I was in more of a rock guitar mood than jazz that day.  Whatever it was, I’m glad my curiosity got the best of me.  Its not an album I can always just dive into, but when the mood strikes, it scratches an itch that straight ahead rock and traditional jazz just don’ t reach.  It also wasn’t a love-at-first-listen for me either.  Whether mood or my comprehension of everything going on in the album played into that, I’m not sure.  All I know is I had a much less neutral reaction the second and third time through.  I will say that some of these compositions are fairly organic in their dynamics and pace.  Its definitely not an instant gratification type of song structure, more often than not counting on a steady building of elements or instruments to finally get to the full-on pace of the music.

The album takes its name from the Youngbloods’ cover, which forgoes the haunting quality of the original in favor of some great minor-key funk comping.  Its a very strong track that has an awful lot going for it, likely the best on the album.  There is a sort of tactile like quality to Upchurch’s playing, almost as if the tone has physical texture.  Its likely encouraged by a bit of grit in his playing that never crosses over into the cliched distorted mess so many albums put on full display, though there is certainly no shortage of wah-wah pedals used.  Credit must be given to Arthur Adams for his rhythm guitar work.  The guitars are so consistent in tone that I mistakenly thought his work was actually multi-tracking work of Upchurch himself.

The album is very organic and natural sounding despite wah-wah use, both in the aforementioned gradual dynamic builds and through various devices utilized by Upchurch for leading the songs along, such as double stops, chord sweeps and staccato stops and starts, almost treating his guitar like a percussion instrument.  One fun surprise was the chord melody intro to Sweet Chariot that seems to channel Joe Pass directly, which also drives home the dynamic, organic pace further still.  At first blush several of the songs give off a brief impression of cheesy lounge music but it is a short-lived first impression that is quite far from accurate when all is said and done.  Its perhaps only on repeated listens where you begin to really appreciate the variety of tone and shades of gray present in the guitar sounds.  Often times with instrumental jazz guitar albums, I find myself ’studying’ the music, enjoying technical capability and/or song structure over most other song aspects.  Not so with this release.  Groove is laid on thick with this album, and I find myself nodding along over time as the songs progress, often unaware of little else.

With my relatively small experience with r&b and soul, and only minor interest in the blues, I really appreciated the album’s lack of bias towards any one musical genre.  There’s quite a lot of variety here, and ultimately makes the album that much more unique and fresh.  Marvin Gaye’s Inner City Blues was not even on my radar prior to hearing this reworking of the song.  Being an instrumental album, there is probably a bit of a melting pot effect, and I can tell you that Upchurch makes each song his own.  His cover of Fire and Rain (James Taylor), for example, is a completely different journey than the original, while still being true to the original in spirit.  As far as sonics go, I found it to be perfectly acceptable, if a little heavy in the bass.  I’ll note that I’ve only experienced the “SHMCD” version as opposed to the domestic release.  I’ve been told that SHMCDs tend to be overly bright at times, and perhaps compressed further than original releases.  If thats the case here, the brightness is probably for the better to offset the lower register’s prominence.  Though I won’t deny I would prefer less bass, which would give it a more balanced sound.  When listening to an album of cover songs, part of the fun is experiencing the surprises yourself, so I’ll forgo a detailed song by song account of the album so as not to spoil it for you.  Rest assured its a satisfying listen and its highly recommended.  ‘Its a grower’ and ‘YMMV’ both apply here.

Musicians:
Phil Upchurch - Lead Guitar/Main Guitar, Electric Bass
Donny Hathaway - Horn, Keyboard
Harvey Mason - Drums
Arthur Adams - Rhythm Guitar
Ben Sidran - Organ/Keyboards
Don Simmons - Organ/Drums
Bobbye Hall - Percussion
Bobby PorterHall - Conga, Tambourine
Chuck Rainey - Bass
Joe Sample - Piano

Songs:
1. Darkness Darkness
2. Fire And Rain
3. What We Call The Blues
4. Cold Sweat
5. Please Send Me Someone To Love
6. Inner City Blues
7. You’ve Got A Friend
8. Love And Peace
9. Sweet Chariot
10. Sausalito Blues

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Ella Fitzgerald is known as the first lady of song. After hearing any album you can understand why she is given this title. However, after hearing this album, you understand it even more.

THE MUSIC

Most people are accustomed to hearing Ella sing either with Louis Armstrong or solo in her great songbook series. This album finds Ella in top form singing with a small jazz ensemble. This intimate style is a sharp contrast to the large orchestral tracks of her songbook series but it is in no way less impressive or lacking in artistic character.

The album starts out with a jazz standard more reminiscent of Charlie Parker/Dizzy Gillespie. However, when you hear Ella’s version of “A Night In Tunisia” you’ll wonder why you haven’t heard it this way before.

“Your My Thrill” is a complete vocal stunner. It’s sung in a hauntingly beautiful way and the delicate playing by the musicians just adds gorgeous layers of music on top of Ella’s voice. The song is just a superb performance all around.

“Clap Hands, Here Comes Charlie” has a great drum intro as well as some awesome bass playing. This song has some great dynamics as well and definitely qualifies as a treat for the ears.

On “Spring Can Really Hang You Up The Most” you can hear Ella open her mouth before she even starts singing! The rendition of this song is probably among the very best I have ever heard. The delicate piano playing really stands out on this song as well as the light touch on the drums. Musicians often complain that slow songs are among the hardest to play. If this is so, this song makes it sound ever so easy with fantastic playing all around.

I have singled out only a couple of tracks on this 14 track record but rest assured that every single song is a winner - from the first to the very last note. You really must hear it to really appreciate Ella’s phrasing and the skill of all the musicians involved.

THE SOUND

In one word: AMAZING. When I play music recorded like this to people they are often dumbfounded to learn that the music is over 45 years old. This album was recorded and mixed at Radio Recorders and engineered by Val Valentin. The two-track reduction was made on 6/24/61 by Val Valentin. 1961!!! That’s nearly 48 years as of this writing. Nearly 48 years later, here I am listening to this great album and I swear you can hear tons of details. There is so much detail that you can literally hear the room where they are recording. I swear that I can actually hear the room - that’s right - your reading this correctly - THE ROOM! The time and spatial detail is just to die for. There are few albums that I would classify as perfections in music and sound. This is one of those albums.

Why? Well, I have heard many, many albums where they get the EQ right, the soundstage might be great as well, but the thing that always gets me to say “WOW!” is when you feel like you’re there. It takes a special combination of proper microphone placement as well as engineering skills to get an album to sound this good. One outstanding example is on the song “This Years Kisses”. In the intro you can hear the electric guitar on the left speaker, yet if you listen closely, you can hear the guitar strings being plucked on the right speaker. On “Good Morning Heartache” when Ella sings “Might as well get used to you hanging around…” you can hear her voice coming off the walls of the room on both speakers (and not just on this song either!!). The last bass note on “Good Morning Heartache” just floats decays in the air until it turns into tape hiss. This albums sound quality is really just uncanny in my honest opinion.

I expect you to doubt me. In fact, I hope you do doubt me so that you can go out and buy this fantastic album and verify all these claims yourself. You will not be sorry.

CONCLUSION

This is definitely one of Ella’s lesser known works but every song is delicate and her phrasing is light and nuanced in every good way there is. The sound is nothing short of spectacular with great spatial detail and ambiance. In short, this is a killer record and one that every jazz fan, female vocalist fan and audiophile should own. It deserves a place in the heart of any music fan’s collection.

SPECIAL NOTE

There are at least 3 different versions of this album. The version with the best sound quality is the early Verve release mastered by Dennis Drake. It should cost no more than $15.00 new. Avoid all the other versions.

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Before I start the review, let me state the following:
If your a fan of bass players and appreciate well played, FAT sounding bass notes with great swing - look no further and just buy this album now.

Now, onto the review…

I was going to the CD shop! What I bought was expensive yet it was music by someone I had never heard before. This is definately not a well known name in jazz (yet) and my purchase was due more to a mere whim of consumerism rather that knowledge of the people involved in the album. Upon first listen, I was impressed by the music that came from my speakers and at that very instant I knew that my money had been well spent. The music was fantastic, warm yet different. The singer, bass player and composer, Esperanza Spalding, is the golden ticket here. Despite her young age, her bass playing is reminiscent of such greats by the names of Charles Mingues, Israel Lopez and Ray Brown to name a few. Her other trio members, pianist Aruán Ortiz and drummer Francisco Mela, are Cuban musicians who play with great gusto and round out the trio with a firm but swinging foundation. You can definitely feel the joy in the recording studio that day.

What really sets this album apart from the masses is her singing. More specifically - wordless singing. A type of scat if you will. While there are no words, her soft style brings about memories of some of the most suave bossa nova singers from times past. Pair this with her natural sense of rhytm and the charm never fades. This album is lyrical, fresh, hip and energetic from start to finish.

Normally, I would pick out a song and attempt to describe it. This is pointless for this album as every song has a special charm about it. It really is something you must hear on your own.

The mastering on the album is not perfect but it is very far from bad as well. It’s great actually. Not over compressed but a bit on the dark side for my preferences. Regardless this is a very, very minor complaint and admittedly, my only complaint for this album.

While expensive when compared to most jazz releases and re-releases, this album contains music that is worth the admission fee and is an album every jazz fan should own. Highly recommended!

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Upon the very first trumpet note, “Back To The Land” oozes tone.  Syncopation, varying durational patterns, texture and of course turn-arounds are some of the devices used throughout.  Gillespie often uses muted and/or distorted notes to set against the rinforzando notes he interjects quite frequently, which themselves set to material held back, or ritenuto.  This is some heavy manipulation, and goes a long way to interject unadulterated emotion into the music.  This is one of the more emotional jazz albums I’ve heard, but not in an overtly exaggerated way.  There is never a sense the musicians are trying to explain how they feel to you; this feels more like an experience that the listener is made part of, right along with the band.  Put simply, when listening to this album, you will forget the world around you.  Gillespie is by no means the only one with deft use of such mechanisms.  Ray Brown makes frequent use of triple-note runs to help accent a point being driven home by the band.  He’ll continue with this throughout much of the album, in a telepathic-like tandem with Mickey Roker.  He’ll occasionally step down from his high-reaching bass notes to some guttural material, set against Basie’s high-octave playing.

“Constantinople” starts out simple enough.  Basie plays a little intro riff, with plenty of empty space, ripe for the picking.  The band mates start playing off the riff, as if they were offering up new pieces of an abstract puzzle.  There’s a lot of play with the space, and great care is taken to leave it partially empty, despite the flurry of activity.  This keeps the dark, murky vibe Basie has created to keep going strong.  There are no unnecessary notes; every note is utilized to its full extent, with no waste left over.  The band dials back, while Brown lets loose a flurry of bass activity, itself held back in volume in keeping with the dynamics of the song.  How one plays this fast quietly, I’ll never now.  As things pick up, Gillespie offers up some of the best muted trumpet tone’s I’ve ever heard.  The high octave is exploited, but there are no piercing notes, as often the case with muted trumpet.  There simply isn’t an offensive or harsh note to be found anywhere.

“You Got It” takes the album into Basie’s trademark happy and peppy territory with a soft piano transition.  After completing the first verse, he doesn’t simply launch into his solo; he slips into it like an old man into a pool of water.  Only here its not to get acclimated; its to let the listener get acclimated, just like he did with the transition.  Brown covers most of the territory; something which starts to verge on redundant, but as soon as Basie returns, it no longer sounds so.  Is this his way of pushing the envelope, or merely working with what he’s got (given the sparse nature of this ensemble).  Gillespie fires off some quick rounds for his lead, the way you’d expect a bopper to do.  Not that it’s a bad thing, mind you.  Gillespie can coax some pretty incredible wails out of his instrument, and hold his own with the best of them.  When he launches into the final few bars, it sure seems like it worked.  Brown and Basie fill the end of the song like two people attaching the last few pieces of a puzzle, and everything just sort of slides into place.

“St. James Infirmary” exposes itself as the star of the album.  Gillespie’s palpable tone, with the perfect bite and tinge to it, is given plenty of wiggle room, complimented with very dynamic snare wraps that give a feeling of tension.  Basie’s minimalism as spot-on and dynamic as ever.  Brown’s woody bass tones come through with all their muted, plucked glory.  Staccato trumpet lines bring the focus back to Gillespie again for round two.  Followed by the opposite; long drawn-out lines, juxtaposed beautifully.  The entire song is just dripping with emotion, and feeling.  After a few Gillespie phrases out front, Brown comes back in louder, with a rhythmic change, building up the tension further, then brings it back down to its final resting place.

“Follow The Leader” returns yet again to the faster, happier material.  Mickey Rocker cycles through well placed cymbal splashes, gradually building, in tandem with Ray’s swelling bass lines.  Its like they have the volume button, letting Gillespie know when to dig in, when to withdraw, giving an organic sound, as if the music was breathing. During Gillespie’s solo, Roker does this thing with cymbal tapping and snare tapping simultaneously that just knocks me on my ass.  You’d miss it if you weren’t paying attention, but that’s the strength of this album; it commands your full attention.  Ray gets a little time out front on this one, and everyone does a good job becoming the anchor’s anchor, and stepping back.

I found “Ow!” to be the most straight-forward track of the bunch.  The musicians keep to the same devices explained above.  Roker is the only element worth isolating; he uses this track to cycle through several different styles, but its done in a subtle way, with the absence of cymbals being the key difference with the more held-back style that gets exhibited several times.  Like the rest of the album, the listener is made to feel like part of the band, and becomes unaware of anything else going on, being drawn in to the music exclusively and completely.  The device that most responsible for this, and the one found universally across the entire album, is the deliberate yet intoxicating manipulations of empty space from Basie and Co.  The silent pauses and playing ‘in the pocket’ and related durational elements are superlative.  This is mandatory listening for all you jazz cats.

Musicians:
Count Basie - Piano
Dizzy Gillespie - Trumpet
Ray Brown - Bass
Mickey Roker - Drums

Songs:
1. Back To The Land
2. Constantinople
3. You Got It
4. St. James Infirmary
5. Follow The Leader
6. Ow!

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While a bit obscure stateside, Tatsuya Takahashi has offered up a gorgeous, meandering piece from the far east.  Much of the work of The Tokyo Union is in fact unavailable and/or hard to find in the U.S.  However, Scandinavian Suite can, for now, still be found in XRCD format online in the usual places.  It is an album that is probably best thought of as a jazz band filtered through superlative orchestration.

Things start out rather slow in part one;  “Midnight Sunrise.”  Mickey Yoshino’s synthesizer opens up with a delayed echo sweep of sorts, which is then joined by bass & piano, guitar and finally the rest of the band.  This appropriately sets the stage for the rest of the album.  It is made clear this is a “sum greater than the parts” affair, with everyone playing their part.  Its rather interesting, the balance they achieved in giving a sense of air and space, and allowing each instrument to shine, yet not morph into a show-off session.  You don’t get a sense of call and response with this one.  Its more about carefully orchestrated arrangements.  Think chess, not tennis, with every member being a separate piece.  However, there are places where separate players offer up quick solos that act as transitions between the different parts of the song, such as the deftly executed sax break at 4:21 into the song, and the beautiful crescendo immediately following it.  A complete tempo change offers up the last surprise of the song, which quietly fades to its conclusion, with the trumpet appropriately sounding the final melancholy riff, akin to what you’d hear at a funeral.

Transitioning into “Sketches of Munich”, the synth is again allowed to briefly step out front.  But not for long.  A few instruments come in, then a few more.  Things pick up pretty quickly, and we’re way passed basic counterpoint here.  There’s a myriad of parts.  Its all over the map, yet gives no feeling of randomness.  This has clearly been carefully plotted and is now being flawlessly executed.  The trombones have a little line here, the trumpets a quick burst there, …if you told me each group of instruments was a different note on one all-encompassing keyboard being played by one person I’d be inclined to believe it, were it not for all the tone and detail oozing from the notes.  This is incredible teamwork.  There’s also a lot of play with instrument placement, with the synth alternating between left and right channels during some passages.

“The Legend Of Gabo” brings in a more romantic type of sound, with slow cymbal flares, long drawn-out notes, and plenty of vibrato in the reeds.  There’s more sense of improvisation here, as the saxophone is given ample time to solo, and basically lead the band through the song.  The brass essentially plows through backing notes, along with chords from the synth (which now mimics traditional piano), juxtaposing short bursts with long sustained tones.  Natural tone is indeed sought after with the synth, but the guitar still maintains a warm electric jazzbox tone, sweetening up the background a bit, with its sporadic chromatic flourishes, contrasting with the saxophone leads.

An interesting change takes place, and the band finds themselves on a sweeping, epic sound with “Anderson Fantasia”, predominately wind-based.  A beautiful piano prequel is played about 1 minute into the track, met with cymbal swells and clicks.  Several miscellaneous abstract sound effects appear in the edges of the stereo spectrum, chimes cap it off, then there is a return to chords and structure.  Different brass coming in on different beats, guitar and synth plodding away simultaneously.  Finally some trumpet solos take the spotlight, with the band doing their usual metric variations and syncopation variations to keep everything interesting.  After several quick stop-starts and empty spaces, bongo drums are heard in the background.  They don’t last long, then the band takes everything down a notch, and the guitar plays an exit solo, immediately following a crescendo and song transition.

“Sibelius’ Testament” throws a curve ball with classical based orchestration, then another with a move to big band swing for the rest of the brief track.  Synth embellishments play with a beautiful cadence panned across the stereo image as the bass lays down a fast rhythm for the saxophone to solo over.  At times the sax sounds almost like a clarinet’s upper octave in the soft outtro.

More curve balls are thrown with “Children at Play”, with funky bass and guitar tones, met with flute and sax leads.  The synth again takes a background role with effects panning around.  The guitar has taken on a distorted tone for the first time, which pairs nicely with the bright tones of the brass playing staccato lines in unison.  A trombone steps out into the spotlight with a rousing, funk based solo, which is given a similar distorted tone, which backs off just in time for the synth to go flat-out nuts.  A short repeat of the verse is played through, giving various members a chance to take the lead part, offering up their subtle variations in the process.  The track fades out and the album is finished.

Scandinavian Suite is an absolute blast to listen to.  Give this one your full attention, and sit back and admire the performance given, would be my advice.

Musicians:
Eijiro Miyazaki, Kiyotaka Uchida & Koichi Okada - trombones
Kazuhiro Ebisawa - drums
Keiji Hori & Hiroshi Yaginuma - alto saxes
Kenichi Araya & Takao Naoi - guitars
Kenichi Sudare - bass trombone
Mickey Yoshino - synthesizer
Seiji Inoue - tenor sax
Tatsuya Takahashi - leader & tenor sax
Yoshifumi Tada, Hiroshi Abiko, Motoharu Suzuki & Tomokazu Saio - trumpets

Songs:

1.  Midnight Sunrise
2.  Sketches of Munch
3.  The Legend of Garbo
4.  Andersen Fantasia
5.  Sibelius’ Testament
6.  Children At Play

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I knew I was on to something the moment I hit play with this one.  I noticed above-average sound quality, lots of space around the notes and no loss or muffling of the high end.  Three major pitfalls thwarted from the get-go.  And that’s for the 1983 copy of the disc.  I suspect the Original Jazz Classic (OJC) would be equal, if not better.  You can also hear the tape rolling, so it has not been “no-noised”, another popular point of contention for audiophiles.  What we’re left with is a straight-ahead cooker of an album.

Basie starts off the album on with a soft number, “Jaylock”. Basie’s trademark minimalist piano joins the delicate drumming of Jake Hanna.  A slow rise in dynamics introduces the other band members.  This swell continues, and finally Lockjaw makes his presence felt in the song’s dynamic climax.  This encourages everyone else to dig in a little more too.  Even Joe Pass, a player I find normally quite reserved and conservative.

Things pick up with “Exactly Like You”, with a faster tempo and a more straight-ahead vibe.  J.J. Johnson steps out front and belts out a spirited solo, immediately followed by Lockjaw.  Next up is Freddie Hubbard with his high-pitched staccato lines.  Simultaneously Basie starts comes out of the background just a smidge.  Some more chromatic runs are made by Pass, then a little call-and-response session between all the horn members finishes out the bulk of the song, along with occasional embellishments by Hanna, Heard and Basie.  Don’t let their subdued roles fool you; they provide an absolutely smoking rhythm section.

Things back down again a bit with “I’ll Always Be In Love With You.”  The musicians still largely take turns, but its not so much a show piece as it is telling a story.  The improvisation tends to stick fairly close to the main riffs, though it is partially in the shorter nature of the solos.  The biggest difference is the way everyone not soloing handles embellishments.  They tend to either echo the verse’s melodic ideas, or provide some sort of counterpoint to them or the soloist lines.  It makes for a very full sound, despite the track’s laid-back vibe.

“If I Could Be With You One Hour Tonight” brings the pace back further still, back to where we were with the opening track.  It also brings a return to the soft-heavy dynamic swells which are so fun to hear Basie lead.  He takes a moment before the final turn-around to display his minimalist style out front.

“Honi Coles” has Pass laying out the first single-note verse lines.  Then he repeats, only this time with chords, with Basie tagging along.  Lockjaw takes an extended lead, with the occasional swelling embellishment by various band mates.  Hubbard and Johnson both get their own extended sessions.  Basie really steps out of the limelight on this one, and is quite sporadic with his activity.  His restraint keeps things from getting too busy,  with all the different things going on.

The album’s closer, “Blues For Norman” again takes a slower approach.  Pass’s lines let us know this is indeed based on the blues.  This number is about two things; tone and feeling.  I’d say Lockjaw wins on feeling, and Hubbard wins on tone.

This album shows that, even when there is so much raw talent in one small ensemble, the sum can still be stronger than the parts, if teamwork is made paramount.  As good as the solos are, its all the micro details and embellishments that make this record so fun.  They way they vary from soft to loud only serves to draw you in further.  If I had to make a complaint, it would be that the drums and bass weren’t given any real time out front.  It’s a small complaint though, because both were key roles in all  said embellishments.  If you’re looking for a real ‘cooker with great sound quality, pick this one up.

Musicians:
Count Basie - Piano
John Heard - Bass
Jake Hanna - Drums
J.J. Johnson - Trombone
Freddie Hubbard - Trumpet
Joe Pass - Guitar
Eddie “Lockjaw” Davis - Tenor Saxophone

Songs:
1. Jaylock
2. Exactly Like You
3. I’ll Always Be In Love With You
4. If I Could Be With You One Hour Tonight
5. Honi Coles
6. Blues For Norman

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Going Home was recommended to me on a forum I frequent, based on my interest in Ray Brown’s bass playing, and my recent discovery of Laurindo Almeda’s guitar prowess.

To date, Ray Brown is and has been my favorite jazz bassist, since my discovery of him in the genre.  His tone, attack and timing are, for me, impeccable.  He has a way of being able to play a lot of notes, but not sound decadent or excessive, and each note played simply belongs.  He is capable of beautifully intricate lines, while avoiding overtly flashy playing.  Most importantly, he knows when to remain in the background, and let others have their moment to shine.

What makes Going Home so much different than the other Brown material I’ve personally heard is the meshing between his bass and the drums, and the flute material from Bud Shank.  When all three combine, it makes a visceral yet graceful, palpable snappy sound.  Shank’s sax material, by itself, is even stronger than his flute variety.  As a whole, I feel as though everything has been tightened up somewhat, and is best illustrated within the flute passages.  Ray is still able to play in his loose style, but the overall effect is a tight, staccato sound for much of the record.  Factor in the quick Spanish guitar backing chords, and Almeida’s technique of strumming that somehow is quick and decisive, but gives all the notes room to breathe and have their own individuality, and we have quite the interesting jazz record.

Calling it a jazz record may be putting too fine a point on it though.  Almeida is more of a classical player, so there really isn’t any straight-ahead jazz.  A longer, verse-based record is the result, from what I can tell.  There are no long stretches of avant-garde solos; they are shorter and end up being more intertwined with whatever verse or section of the song they originate from.  In short, everyone is kept in check, and bound by the song structure, as opposed to being free to roam about and see where things go.  Luckily, there is no shortage of straight-ahead or free jazz discs out there, so this change ultimately makes for a more interesting counterpoint in Ray’s discography.

The short intro of “Softly, As In A Morning Sunrise” would be an exception to that rule, with the exclusion of bass and guitar.  Flute accompanies drums for a stout, kicky little segment, until eventually everyone else joining in.  Its also one area of the album where I feel the full potential is never realized.  The classical and jazz differences don’t usually bring anything down, but Almedia’s playing here seems uninspired in a few places.  He echoes Ray Brown, which seems a bit redundant.  The track does have a bit of an open, airy feel to it (as does much of the record overall), so he probably wanted to avoid bogging it down further, and let the flute remain the dominant instrument, but providing a counterpoint to Ray’s playing throughout would have been a better choice.  He does so in a few places with chord work, but not the individual note material.  Its not wrong per se, it just seems a tad obvious.  That said, if this is the biggest point of contention for me, than I’d feel comfortable saying its still an outstanding album.  Almeda’s strumming chord work playing off the bass and drums goes a long way to blur the line between tight, regimented playing, and maintaining a loose pocket.  This is where the classical and jazz best meet.  The chords are still classically executed, but its when he plays them that makes all the difference.  This interplay is strongest on “Recipe of Love.”

Shelly Manne’s drums are probably most responsible for the album’s snappy sound characteristics.  He attacks very confidently, yet uses a soft touch which often reminds me of Joe Morello’s work with Dave Brubeck.  This similarity is particularly strong in the snare work.  Its nuances like these that allow Bud Shank’s flute to make such a large impact, achieving that airy sound mentioned earlier.  There’s just enough bite in the cymbals to give everything a sharp edge, without becoming overly brittle or harsh.

Its worth noting that the sixth track, “Romance de Armor” is a solo guitar piece.  It is an exquisite one at that.  The second half of the album is where much of the pyrotechnics kick in, and that track could be thought of as a sort of bookend to it all. 

Don’t hesitate picking it up.  Look for import versions in the usual places. Several different versions are available.  Fans of Laurindo Almeda are encouraged to check out the Concord release Brazilian Soul, co-lead by Charlie Byrd.  Ray Brown fans are encouraged to check out This One’s For Blanton, a duet with Duke Ellington.

Musicians:
Bud Shank - Alto Saxophone, Flute
Laurindo Almeida - Guitar
Ray Brown - Bass
Shelly Manne - Drums

Songs:
1. Going Home
2. Softly, As In A Morning Sunrise
3. Greensleeves
4. Things Ain’t What They Used To Be
5. Recipe of Love
6. Romance de Amor
7. Django

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