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Count Basie: Late Night Basie
ByThe seven-member rock/fusion group Lettuce, featuring rapper Talib Kweli, opens the album with a run-of-the-mill shuffle called "Didn't You" before the Basie Orchestra leaps in with vocal and instrumental renditions of "One O'Clock Jump" (both listed as Track 2). The ballad "Blue and Sentimental," sung (presumably) by guitarist Rebecca Lovell, whose backup group, Larkin Poe, consists of Megan Lovell (lap steel guitar), bassist Will Lee and drummer Shawn Pelton, precedes the last numbers by the Basie Orchestra, "M Squad" (featuring guest trumpeter Terence Blanchard) and a torrid reading of "Jumpin' at the Woodside" with solos to match by guitarist Jimmy Vivino and an uncredited tenor saxophonist (either Doug Lawrence or Doug Miller).
The Soul Rebels, whose star soloist is trumpeter Nicholas Payton, are lustrous and lively on Sonny Rollins' calypso "St. Thomas," whose crisp djembe solo is by Weedie Braimah with a vocal by the well-named Cimafunk. That leads to the "bonus" track, yet a third restatement of "One O'Clock Jump," this one by trumpeter Danny Jonokuchi & The Revisionists, with nimble solos by the leader, pianist Ben Paterson, alto saxophonist Jay Rattman, trombonist Robert Edwards and a tenor saxophonist, although none is listed among the personnel.
With more Basie, less interlopers and a longer playing time, this could have been an outstanding album. As it is, the Basie Orchestra raises it slightly above average, even though at twenty-four (or even twenty-eight) minutes, it is well shy of generous.
Track Listing
Didn’t You; One O’Clock Jump; Blue & Sentimental; M-Squad; Jumpin’ at the Woodside; St. Thomas; One O’Clock Jump (bonus track).
Personnel
Scotty Barnhart
trumpetAdditional Instrumentation
Track 1, Lettuce—Talib Kweli: vocal; Eric “Benny” Bloom: trumpet; Ryan Zoidis: saxophone; Adam Smirnoff: guitar; Nigel Hall: keyboards; Eric Coomes: bass; Adam Deitch: drums, percussion. Tracks 2, 4, 5, The Count Basie Orchestra—Scotty Barnhart: director; Terence Blanchard, Frank Greene, Shawn Edmonds, Endre Rice, Brandon Lee: trumpet; David Glasser, Markus Howell: alto sax, flute; Doug Lawrence, Doug Miller: tenor sax; Josh Lee: baritone sax; Isrea Butler, Clarence Banks, Mark Williams: trombone; Alvin Walker: bass trombone; Will Matthews: guitar; Glen Pearson: piano; Ray Angry: organ; Trevor Ware: bass; Robert “B.T.” Boone: drums; Jazzmeia Horn: vocals. Track 3, Larkin Poe—Rebecca Lovell: guitar, vocal; Megan Lovell: lap steel; Will Lee: bass; Shawn Pelton: drums. Track 6, The Soul Rebels— Nicholas Payton, Marcus Hubbard, Julio Omari Gosin: trumpet; Erion Brandon Williams: saxophone; Paul Michael Robertson, Corey Donovan Peyton: trombone; Manuel Perkins Jr.: sousaphone; Lumar Leblanc III: snare drum; Derrick James Moss: bass drum; Weedie Bramah: djembe; Cimafunk: vocal. Track 7, Danny Jonokuchi & The Revisionists—Danny Jonokuchi: trumpet; Jay Rattman: alto sax, clarinet; Robert Edwards: trombone; Ben Paterson: piano; Noah Jackson: bass; Kevin Congleton: drums; Alexa Barchini: voice.
Album information
Title: Late Night Basie | Year Released: 2023 | Record Label: Virgin Records
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About Scotty Barnhart
Instrument: Trumpet
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