Dave Weckl Band: Synergy

When Dave Weckl decided to have a “band writing day, rehearsal kind of jam session” while touring with his present ensemble, he couldn’t have made a wiser decision. That day ended up yielding the foundation for almost half of the material on Synergy, his latest release on Stretch Records. The band, Brandon Fields on tenor sax, Jay Oliver on keyboards, Buzz Feiten on guitar,Tommy Kennedy on bass and Dave Weckl on drums, is captured having fun and being spontaneous with music that is written for both live and studio performances. As one of modern jazz fusion most rhythmically eclectic drummers, Weckl mixes everything from blues, Latin, African to soul, rock and jazz...making the synergy happen. “High Life” opens the 12-track set with a West African-influenced drum groove. His drum solo over the vamp is incredible. You can sense the fun Weckl is having on “Swunk,” as he plays with a swing/funk feel. On the beautiful ballad, “A Simple Prayer,” Weckl provides a mellow percussion groove with finger cymbals and a bell tree, adding just the right touches to the Buzz Feiten tune. Synergy may have created an entirely new definition of jazz fusion with its title salsa/funk tune. It’s a full testament to the accord of the Weckl collaborations. The CD is cohesive and a compliment to the contemporary masters who created it and had fun doing it!

TRACKS:High Life, Panda's Dream, Swunk, A Simple Prayer, Cape Fear, Wet Skin, Synergy, Where's My Paradise?, Lucky Seven, Swamp Thing, Cultural Concurrence, Tower '99.

MUSICIANS:BRANDON FIELDS, sax; JAY OLIVER, keyboards; BUZZ FEITEN, guitar; TOMMY KENNEDY, bass; DAVE WECKL, drums.

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