Album review: Dave Slonaker Big Band - Shifty Paradigms (Origin Records)

Dave Slonaker (MD, composer, arranger); Bob Sheppard (alto/soprano sax); Brian Scanlon (alto/soprano sax, flute); Rob Lockart, Tom Luer (tenor sax, clarinet); Adam Schroeder (baritone sax, bass clarinet, flute); Alex Iles, Charlie Morillas, Ido Meshulam (trombone); Bill Reichenbach (bass trombone, bass trumpet); Wayne Bergeron, Dan Fornero, Clay Jenkins, Ron Stout (trumpet); Ed Czach (piano); Andy Waddell (guitar); Edwin Livingston (bass); Peter Erskine (drums); Brian Kilgore (perc. tks 4 , 5, 8)

The third big band album from Hollywood based composer and arranger Slonaker assembles a collection of first call studio musicians for a recording that swings for today without paying too much attention to the past.

Every track stands out - not just for the arrangement which we take for granted will be of the highest order - but for the soloists who deliver the goods that the charts demand.

Dash Cam, influenced by his many adventures on L.A.'s freeways. Meshulam on valve trombone and Luer on tenor ride shotgun on this commute.

Bye Bye Blues, has been around, it seems, since the original Adam albeit not in waltz time over which this Adam (Schroeder) blows baritone. Slonaker changes it into a fast 4/4 for Stout's trumpet solo. Beneath it all there's a nod towards Miles' All Blues.

Comin' Home is all about leaving home and coming back albeit as a changed individual. Scanlon on alto and Waddell on guitar represent those changes.

Blue Windows. Plenty solos on this one. Sheppard on soprano, Meshulam, Jenkins, Schroeder, Livingston, Scanlon and Lockart all in their pitching.

Shifty Paradigms, the title track gives space to Reichenbach on bass trumpet, Sheppard on sop and Kilgore on congas.

3rd and Four. Slonaker takes intervals of major 3rds and 4ths for his inspiration. For the layman (a bit of useless information) think of the interval c to e or f or as the first two notes of, respectively, I Can't Get Started and All the Things You Are. Solos from Czach, Jenkins, Morillas, Sheppard (alto), Livingston and legendary drummer Erskine.

Cathedrals relates to the great cathedrals of Europe of which Slonaker has visited. Melodic and respectful of those grand structures and the artisans who built them. The jazz artisans are Iles and Waddell.

Roundabout. An uptempo samba that has Stout, Lockart and Erskine in fine form bringing an excellent big band bash to a close.

Big bands no longer tour the world in a coach that keeps breaking down. Instead they drive to the studio in their Lincolns and Fords and record music like this. Music that's better value than their cars. Lance