Nightcrawlers: Get Ready

The common thread between the Nightcrawlers and nightcrawler earthworms is that they both come out at night, and while the former is at home in a jazz club before a live audience, the latter is feeding on decaying organic material. Some may say that is a distinction without a difference. Nevertheless the latest nightly ritual for the Nightcrawlers is called Get Ready and it was recorded live at Frankie's Jazz Club in Vancouver B.C. This confident sextet is centred around the Hammond B-3 organ.

The band which has been together for almost two decades, has a core group composed of drummer Jesse Cahill, organist Chris Gestrin, guitarist Dave Sikula and tenor saxophonist Cory Weeds. The new additions are alto saxophonist Nick Hempton and percussionist Jack Duncan, each of whom adds some muscle to the aggregation.

The title track and Weeds original "Get Ready" opens the session with Sikula's guitar carrying the melody as he sets the table for the band to settle into a solid groove. Throughout this lengthy number (13+ minutes) each soloist takes a piece of the action. "Face To Face" is the title track from organist Baby Face Willette's debut Blue Note album from 1961. The band does not stray far from the gnarly straight-ahead lines.

The other extended track is the Gil Fuller and Chano Pozo composition "Tin Tin Deo." The number was first recorded by James Moody and his Bop Men in 1949. Percussionist Duncan opens the tune with an extended conga solo, with the theme then picked up by organist Gestrin until the horns take up the bridge. The Latin beat pulses and drives the number forward. The follow on track is "What Do You Say Dr. J" by pianist James Williams and was an essential of part of the book of Art Blakey & The Jazz Messengers.

The closeout is the George Gershwin standard "A Foggy Day," which is offered as an all out swinger. Everyone delivers their solo lines full of inventive twists. All in all a fun session with a solid vibe.