Home » Jazz Articles » Album Review » Cory Wright Unit: Apples + Oranges

4

Cory Wright Unit: Apples + Oranges

By

View read count
Cory Wright Unit: Apples + Oranges
In jazz, there are composers and there are soloists and, as they say, "never the twain shall meet." Okay, not impossible, but it is rare in modern jazz for a musician to be both an outstanding soloist and a talented arranger. Listening to Apples + Oranges by West Coast saxophonist Cory Wright, the challenge is to determine which of the two talents makes this a thriving and effective recording.

But then again, requiring one to choose will result in a false choice. I like both chocolate and peanut butter, and I love them together.

The disc opens with "Freddie Awaits The Sleepers," a piece that wouldn't be out of place in the 1959 repertoire of Ornette Coleman. That is, if Ornette would have employed a trombonist. Rob Ewing's bone punches through the evanescent bebop passages while Evan Francis' alto saxophone shakes skittering notes. Wright's composition masquerades as unconfined, but it is actually a tightly woven composition. And so are the other seven pieces he penned here. "Whaticism" plays with time, bassist Lisa Mezzacappa soloing, then guiding the quintet through some challenging parts. The music alternately tangles complex arrangements with accommodating solos. Wright's saxophone is a resonant full-bodied sound that fits hand in glove with altoist Evan Francis. He plays both tenor saxophone and Bb clarinet here, delivering a brawny sound. One that has been featured in the bands of Anthony Braxton, Adam Rudolph, Vinnie Golia, and Yusef Lateef.

The beauty of this session is the range of the music. Wright's music can encompass the ceremonial sounds of the "St. Bruno's" series, a semi-classical chamber jazz composition "Eyedrop," and "Low Impact Critter," a sort of "Carl Stalling" cartoon music tribute score. Apples + Oranges turns the wow factor to maximum.

Track Listing

Freddie Awaits The Sleepers; Low Impact Critter; St. Bruno’s Preview; Whaticism; The Sea And Space; St. Bruno’s Review; Eyedrop; St. Bruno’s Purview.

Personnel

Cory Wright
saxophone

Cory Wright: tenor saxophone, Bb clarinet; Evan Francis: alto saxophone, flute; Rob Ewing: trombone; Lisa Mezzacappa: bass; Jordan Glenn: drums.

Album information

Title: Apples + Oranges | Year Released: 2013 | Record Label: Singlespeed Music

Tags

Comments


PREVIOUS / NEXT




Support All About Jazz

Get the Jazz Near You newsletter All About Jazz has been a pillar of jazz since 1995, championing it as an art form and, more importantly, supporting the musicians who make it. Our enduring commitment has made "AAJ" one of the most culturally important websites of its kind, read by hundreds of thousands of fans, musicians and industry figures every month.

Go Ad Free!

To maintain our platform while developing new means to foster jazz discovery and connectivity, we need your help. You can become a sustaining member for as little as $20 and in return, we'll immediately hide those pesky ads plus provide access to future articles for a full year. This winning combination vastly improves your AAJ experience and allow us to vigorously build on the pioneering work we first started in 1995. So enjoy an ad-free AAJ experience and help us remain a positive beacon for jazz by making a donation today.

More

Tramonto
John Taylor
Ki
Natsuki Tamura / Satoko Fujii
Duality Pt: 02
Dom Franks' Strayhorn
The Sound of Raspberry
Tatsuya Yoshida / Martín Escalante

Popular

Old Home/New Home
The Brian Martin Big Band
My Ideal
Sam Dillon
Ecliptic
Shifa شفاء - Rachel Musson, Pat Thomas, Mark Sanders
Lado B Brazilian Project 2
Catina DeLuna & Otmaro Ruíz

Get more of a good thing!

Our weekly newsletter highlights our top stories, our special offers, and upcoming jazz events near you.

Install All About Jazz

iOS Instructions:

To install this app, follow these steps:

All About Jazz would like to send you notifications

Notifications include timely alerts to content of interest, such as articles, reviews, new features, and more. These can be configured in Settings.