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Mike Metheny: KC Potpourri
by Jack Bowers
Trumpeter Mike Metheny is a homeboy, seldom straying far from his native Kansas City, which explains in part why he isn't as well-known here in the States or overseas as his celebrated brother, guitarist Pat. But make no mistake, Mike is a superb musician in his own right, and as he says, “some of the finest ...
Paul McKee: Gallery
by Jack Bowers
On Gallery, which was recorded nearly a dozen years ago but has just now been released, the impressive trombonist Paul McKee, then based in Chicago, uses groups of various shapes and sizes to advance his musical agenda, which consists of straight-ahead versions of five standards, bandleader Claude Thornhill's “Snowfall, and three of his own engaging compositions. ...
The Paul Cacia Jazz Orchestra: Legacy -- The Last Sessions
by Jack Bowers
If name-dropping were a criterion, Paul Cacia's Legacy would surely be among the most notable albums in the annals of jazz. The booklet lists no fewer than 25 special guests, including a quartet of legendary arrangers--Sammy Nestico, Ernie Wilkins, Bill Holman and Pete Rugolo. Would that names were all that was needed to guarantee success. Not ...
NSU Jazz Ensemble: Hour of the Pearl
by Jack Bowers
NSU is Northeastern State University in Tahlequah, Oklahoma. On Hour of the Pearl, the NSU Jazz Ensemble is reinforced on seven of nine selections by the splendid New York-based trumpeter Scott Wendholt, who lends appreciable charm to an otherwise unremarkable studio session. That's not entirely the fault of director Walter White or his eager young students, ...
The Steve Wiest Big Band: Excalibur
by Jack Bowers
Even though the odds are heavily against them, a handful of intrepid souls keeps struggling to safeguard the big band tradition, and a few of them even achieve a certain measure of success. Let's hope that trombonist Steve Wiest is among the modest group of winners, as his debut album, Excalibur, certainly bears repeating--not literally, of ...
Russ Kassoff: Somewhere
by Jack Bowers
It goes without saying that Frank Sinatra could have enlisted the services of any accompanist he wanted. The fact that he chose Russ Kassoff speaks volumes about Kassoff's unequivocal artistry, which is splendidly showcased on Somewhere, Kassoff's first album as leader of his own group (after almost forty years as a professional musician). Kassoff, whose natural ...
Roberto Magris Europlane: Il Bello Del Jazz
by Jack Bowers
This album isn't entirely new to me, as pianist Roberto Magris was kind enough to share an advance copy more than a year ago, before the contract with Soul Note Records had been signed. On this auspicious occasion, Magris' Europlane quartet is accompanied by one of the world's outstanding alto saxophonists, American expatriate Herb Geller, who ...
Rick Wald 16 / NYC: Castaneda's Dreams
by Jack Bowers
Talk about flying under the radar. Saxophonist Rick Wald has been gigging around New York City for 34 years, and this is the first time I've ever heard his name, much less that of the resourceful big band he leads on Castaneda's Dreams. But if one is known by the company he (or she) keeps, Wald ...
Billy Kerr: The Eagle Has Landed... Eh?
by Jack Bowers
If you keep a record of insignificant data, file Billy Kerr under “N, for “names you should know but probably don't. There's a saying about musicians (one that I've never bought into) that goes something like this: “If you haven't lived it, you can't play it. On the other hand, it's an undeniable fact that Billy ...
Taking Schwarzenegger To The Cleaners
by Jack Bowers
In mid-July, Betty and I attended a concert at the Albuquerque Museum of Art's handsome outdoor amphitheatre. While there were no big bands present, the event was nonetheless important--some might say historic--for a couple of reasons. First, the headliner was the great trumpeter Bobby Shew, an Albuquerque native who's been so busy conquering the world that ...
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