All is not lost! At least not if this album is anything to go by. I'm talking about straight ahead jazz as personified within these hallowed grounds by artists such as Vasilis Xenopoulos, Simon Spillett, Paul Booth, Dave O'Higgins and (and it's a very big AND) Alex Garnett. That they are all tenor players comes as no surprise. No other instrument quite captures the mainstream to modern feel of the tenor saxophone.
It's true that a case can be made out for just about any instrument but none come close to the tenor percentage wise. Italian guitarist Andrea Rinciari might dispute this latter statement and if there were more players of his calibre around then he'd have every right to. Bass and drums too make their case providing the power behind the throne. Tremendous!
Relatively unknown bebop classics such as Barry Harris' reworking of Coleman Hawkins' Bean and the Boys, John Collins' John's Delight, Bud Powell's John's Abbey, Freddie Redd's Time to Smile and Elmo Hope/Sonny Rollins' little known Carvin' the Rock entwine with three beautifully rendered standards.
I may have mentioned in previous posts how much I love the verse to Tea For Two - even more than the actual refrain - and Rinciari's beautifully harmonised take is as good as any instrumental version I've heard. Likewise his big feature on Polka Dots and Moonbeams had me hoping that I'd meet 'a pug-nosed dream' at the Globe tonight (at my age I can't afford to be choosy!). I Can't Get Started is a big moment for Garnett - ballad playing at its best.
Release date is May 16 although you may be able to get it earlier from the snake oil hucksters online. Lance
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