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Carla Bley: 4 X 4
Cutting to the chase, my favorite of the lot is “Sidewinders in Paradise,” complete with flute, muted trumpets and Goldings’ upper register work. Things are so chipper and cloying, right down to Lew Soloff’s quote of “Stranger in Paradise” which openly spoofs the song’s title, that you might find yourself wondering if they mistakenly threw in a track from one of those Lounge music compilations. “Blues in 12 Bars” gets right to the funk, Goldings again playing an integral role and Gary Valente’s shouting trombone taking us back to the days of Ray Anderson’s Slickaphonics. With that brazen sense of humor that is part and parcel of the Bley persona, “Baseball” takes as part of its witty melody the old stadium romp, “ta-da-da dat-da-da, charge it!”
With each of the five Bley originals inimitable in establishing its own personality, there’s something here to please everyone and the solo space is liberally spread among all the hands on deck. Not much more need be said except that I wouldn’t be surprised if this sleeper takes a prominent spot on a few reviewers’ lists of top recordings for 2000.
Track Listing
Blues In Twelve Bars/Blues In Twelve Other Bars; Sidewinders In Paradise; Les Trois Lagons; Baseball; Utviklingssang
Personnel
Carla Bley
pianoCarla Bley, piano; Larry Goldings, organ; Steve Swallow, bass; Victor Lewis, drums; Lew Soloff, trumpet; Wolfgang Puschnig, alto sax; Andy Sheppard, tenor sax; Gary Valente, trombone http://www.ecmrecords.com
Album information
Title: 4X4 | Year Released: 2000 | Record Label: WATT Works
About Carla Bley
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