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Steve Davis: Systems Blue
by David A. Orthmann
Indicative of formative experiences in the bands of Art Blakey and Jackie McLean, as well as his current association with the cooperative sextet One For All, Steve Davis’ Systems Blue encompasses many of the characteristics of bop and hard bop without sounding stalled in a bygone era. On his fifth date for the Criss Cross label, the trombonist and prolific composer favors selections from the American Popular Songbook. While he frequently alters the forms and harmonic designs in engaging ways, ...
Continue ReadingOne For All: Live at Smoke, Volume 1
by David A. Orthmann
As anyone who frequents jazz clubs will attest, there are nights that live on in memory for years after the last note fades. Aside from basic details easily recalled (personnel, tunes, arrangements, etc.), what really matters is the way the music made us feel. On these rare occasions, the sounds were so potent that, for a time, nothing else mattered and all worldly concerns yielded to the happenings on stage. In search of another incredible experience, we keep coming back ...
Continue ReadingOne For All: Live at Smoke- Volume 1
by C. Andrew Hovan
Growing out of a weekly jam session that drummer Joe Farnsworth used to lead at a New York club called Augie’s, the hard bop ensemble One For All now encompasses a pool of leaders who still manage to get together and cultivate the kind of musical empathy that they’ve developed over the years. After two initial albums for the Sharp Nine label, the group jumped ship to Criss Cross Jazz where the majority of the guys cut records of their ...
Continue ReadingSteve Davis: Portrait In Sound
by Jim Santella
Mainstream jazz has produced quite a few superior trombonists. From early tailgate counterpoint to swing era melody maker and hard bop leader, the artist has always been able to make use of his instrument's unique characteristics. Unlike piano and vibraphone, the trombone is able to bend pitches and slide from one pitch to the next. In the early days, it was a useful gimmick. Professional players later put aside the comical aspects of the instrument in favor of better sounding ...
Continue ReadingSteve Davis: Portrait In Sound
by David Adler
Chick Corea’s Stretch Records has put out fine albums by Steve Wilson, Avishai Cohen, and Tim Garland — all members of Corea’s newest band, Origin. Now Origin’s Steve Davis takes his turn with Portrait In Sound, which highlights the trombonist’s gratifying interplay with vibraphonist Steve Nelson. Davis also enlists the support of pianist David Hazeltine, bassist Nat Reeves, and drummer Joe Farnsworth.Aside from a straightforward reading of “Darn That Dream," a faster-than-usual “I’m Old Fashioned," and the Corea-penned ...
Continue ReadingSteve Davis: Portrait in Sound
by C. Andrew Hovan
After four unique and striking dates as a leader for Criss Cross , trombonist Steve Davis has made the switch to a stateside label with Portrait in Sound, recorded for boss Chick Corea’s Stretch subsidiary. Building solidly on his track record, this new endeavor presents not only Davis the trombonist but also Davis the gifted arranger and writer. With buddies from the hard bop collective One For All on hand (Hazeltine and Farnsworth) and vibraphonist Steve Nelson a holdover from ...
Continue ReadingJim Rotondi: Excursions
by C. Andrew Hovan
One of the next major talents yet to be discovered by the jazz public at large, trumpeter Jim Rotondi is a dynamo full of the kind of bristling trumpet fire that distinguished such predecessors as Freddie Hubbard and Woody Shaw. Over the course of his first two Criss Cross dates, Introducing Jim Rotondi and Jim’s Bop Rotondi proved that he was a capable mainstream player with great promise in terms of developing his own voice. Now with Excursions he goes ...
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