Scott Burns / John Wojciechowski / Geof Bradfield: Tenor Time

Tenor Time unveils the talents of a trio of Chicago-area tenor saxophonists, each of whom—presumably—solos on each of the album's eight numbers. The qualifier is necessary because the solo order is not given and, skillful as they are, the tenors sound much like triplets at the same workbench. That is to say that in terms of tone, technique and improvisation, they more closely resemble Tweedledee and Tweedledum than, say, Stan Getz, Zoot Sims and Hank Mobley.

If that is not a problem, and the prospect of three topnotch—albeit undesignated—tenor saxophonists and rhythm section making beautiful music together excites you, there is plenty of that on Tenor Time. The tenors—in no particular order aside from the names as they appear on the album cover—are Scott Burns, John Wojciechowski and Geof Bradfield, while the rhythm section consists of bassist Clark Sommers, drummer Greg Artry and last but by no means least, keyboardist Richard D. Johnson who doubles as producer and owns AFAR Music, the label on which the album appears.

Every number on the recording is an original written by a member of the quintet: "Valkyrie" and "Some Other Sunday" by Bradfield, "Monday Waltz" and "Force Majeure" by Burns, "Altar Blues" and "Jazz Folk Song" by Wojciechowski, "Curioso" and "Corea" by Johnson. As is true of the horns, there is little to set the themes apart, as every one is melodious and engaging. Tempos and tenor—pardon the pun—do vary, but everyone is at the top of his game on every number, navigating every twist and turn with agility and assurance. The same applies to the rhythm section, wherein Johnson proves time and again that he did not land the gig simply by producing it (for an example, dig his groovy intro, on "Altar Blues") while Sommers and Artry lend the proper weight and texture.

Given enough repetition, the average listener may be able to identify and separate each of the tenors based on particular anomalies. In the end, however, it is the music that matters most, and the music on Tenor Time is consistently sharp and agreeable. Well done.

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