Home » Jazz Articles » Album Review » California State University Long Beach: Studio 1

162

California State University Long Beach: Studio 1

By

View read count
California State University Long Beach: Studio 1
Another university-level jazz ensemble that can flat-out play, thanks to the sturdy foundation set in place by the late John Prince and the continuing efforts of his successor and current director, Neal Finn. It’s not often that one can number student compositions among the highlights of a recording such as Studio 1, but the two by pianist Gerhart Guter (“Zapotaxi,” “The Men in White”) are so well-written as to easily warrant the sincerest accolades one can bestow, as are Finn’s trio of lissome charts—“Worth the Effort,” “Mysterious Stranger,” “Unknown Dimensions.”

The booklet actually lists three student compositions, but “Star Eyes” isn’t one, even though baritone saxophonist David Zapotocki’s swinging arrangement of the Don Raye/Gene DePaul standard is first-class. Rounding out the colorful program are Bob Bennet’s groovy “Sammy’s Song” (featuring trumpeter Nic Chafee), Stan Kenton’s popular “Artistry in Rhythm” (set to a snappy Latin beat), Kenyon Hopkins’ meditative “12 Angry Men” and two handsome showpieces for smooth vocalist Selwyn Gibson, Jerome Kern’s “I’m Old Fashioned” and Leslie Bricusse/Anthony Newley’s “What Kind of Fool Am I” (the last four arranged by Finn). Tenor saxophonist Sean Franz, who is heard on “Artistry” and “Worth the Effort,” hits his stride as featured soloist on “12 Angry Men,” playing with notable warmth and perception.

The ensemble plays quite well as a unit, the soloists are generally comparable to what one would expect to hear at this level, and the overall sound is bright, clear and fairly well-balanced, even on the lone track (“Men in White”) recorded in concert. As further evidence of the band’s versatility, the booklet’s artwork and design were shaped by bass trombonist Chuck Drinkworth. With talent like that in the lineup, Finn is definitely in the catbird’s seat and the CSULB ensemble is clearly pressing forward on an upward curve.

Personnel

Album information

Title: Studio 1 | Year Released: 2004 | Record Label: Unknown label

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.