Woody Shaw (trumpet); James Spaulding (alto sax/flute); Tyrone Washington (tenor sax); Horace Silver (piano); Ben Riley (bass); Roger Humphries (drums).
When Silver left the Jazz Messengers to form his own quintet/sextet it might have been expected that the formula would remain the same and, in a sense, it did. However, without the drive of Blakey it took on a not quite so hard bop feel.
Silver's groups tended to be a little more subtle and, dare I say it?, didn't quite match the excitement of the Blakey team irrespective of who was in the drummer's ever changing ensemble.
Having said that, I've just heard a sizzling trumpet blast by Woody Shaw, followed by Tyler Washington on tenor and Spaulding on alto that bear comparison with any of the Messengers' alumni.
The title track is a funky groove that was probably inspired by - or maybe vice versa - Ramsey Lewis' hit track The In Crowd.
Throughout, Silver's piano is as eloquent as the moment demands. Spaulding blows nice flute on Mary Lou and spiky alto elsewhere.
But the enigma is Tyrone Washington - the elephant in the corner of the jazz room - who simply disappeared from the scene. For religious reasons it is said but what a waste for whatever reason. This man could have been a contender and I feel privileged to have some of his work on my shelves. And if I ever come across his lone Blue Note album as a leader - Natural Essence - I'll grab it. It isn't even mentioned in Richard Cook's Blue Note Biography book but, then again, quite a few aren't!
Lance.
Jody Grind on YouTube.
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