Ray Anderson: Bonemeal

Bonemeal is clever take off manifested as several allusions. Bone is a nom de plume of the trombone, Ray Anderson's weapon of choice. Bonemeal evokes earthy sensual images in the same way "Cornbread" (Lee Morgan), "Pass the Peas" (Maceo Parker) and "Chitlins Con Carne" (Kenny Burrell). It has a tongue-in-cheek wryness characteristic of its leader, Anderson. Anderson appears with his guitar-based rhythm section at a Paula Jean's Supper Club in East Setauket, New York (on Long Island). Ray Anderson's talent runs the gamut from Anthony Braxton avant guard to Louis Armstrong gutbucket. On this self-produced effort, he swings closer to the latter than the former. Bonemeal is largely a funky blues affair with a couple of foray into ballads ("Kind Of Garnerish" and "Star Crossed Lovers." "Microwave Woman" is a dirty blues in the best tradition of Bessie and Mamie Smith. The song was penned with his wife and Anderson's vocals are sardonically gritty and comically fun, as is all of his superb trombone playing. The key relationship on this disc is that of Anderson and guitarist Salerno. They play off of one another with the familiarity of grudge lovers looking to get even.