Home » Jazz Articles » Album Review » Chris Washburne and the SYOTOS Band: Paradise in Trouble

Chris Washburne and the SYOTOS Band: Paradise in Trouble

By Dr. Judith Schlesinger
August 25, 2003
View read count

Chris Washburne and the SYOTOS Band: Paradise in Trouble

Chris Washburne and his Syotos Band are very special. This would be just an opinion — however accurate — if it weren't for the fact that they've maintained long-term weekly gigs at a top jazz club (Smoke) and a top Latin club (Nuyorican Poets Cafe), the latter for eight years. Recently, they added Tuesdays at a top blues club (B.B. King's). These gigs are notable for two reasons: one, in the current dismal climate of New York's clubs, getting one weekly date is a major accomplishment, even for the very talented. And two, the breadth of the venues — jazz, Latin, and blues — reflects this band's appeal across conventional musical borders.

Paradise in Trouble is an exciting, crackling, danceable mix of Latin rhythms and percussion with jazz, funk, R&B, hiphop, gospel, Caribbean, and Afro-Cuban, with occasional Slavic and Middle Eastern moments. Ten tracks are catchy, varied Washburne originals; one, the powerhouse "Jazzy," is by legendary Willie Colon. All of them are expertly arranged and delivered, swinging and gleeful. The stage is set by the infectious opener, "Money is the Future Tense," which returns in a driving house-music remix as the closer. The combinations are intriguing: "Dirty as a Boy" (Cuban son and hip-hop), "Your Inside Out" (with its nine-beat rhythm from Zimbabwe), "Dr. Syo," (jazz and the African gyil, a mallet instrument made from gourds and wood), "Paradise in Trouble" (funk meets mambo). With its blazing horns, great percussion, joyful energy, and memorable melodies, this is a great party disc.

Note: SYOTOS stands for "see you on the other side," a wry and triumphant reference to Washburne's recovery from cancer.

Track Listing

Money is the Future Tense, She's Dirty as a Boy, Anondyne of Muddledom, Nuyorican Son, Whatever You Want From Me, Paradise in Trouble, Your Inside Out, On Whatever Day of the Week Saturday Happens, Jazzy, Dr. Syo, Money is the Future Tense (remix)

Personnel

Chris Washburne

trombone

Chris Washburne (trombone, percussion, composer, producer), John Walsh (trumpet, flugelhorn, composer), Ole Mathisen (tenor and soprano sax, composer, remix engineer), Barry Olsen (piano, electric keyboards, trombone, composer), Leo Traversa (bass), Vince Cherico (drums, percussion) Wilson "Chembo" Corniel (congas, hand percussion), Randy Klein (producer), Bobby Sanabria (percussion, drums), Renato Thoms (bongos), Valerie Dee Naranjo (gyil, djembe, kpanlogo drums), Bernard Wama (gyil), Ruth Sergel (bells, handclaps), Roberto Jos? Sanabria (hand claps), Gary Dallaire (hand claps)

Album information

Title: Paradise in Trouble | Year Released: 2003 | Record Label: Jazzheads

PREVIOUS / NEXT

Couldn
< Previous

On This Day... At the Vanguard
Next >

Support All About Jazz

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.