Benny Benack III: Third Time's The Charm

While it remains to be seen whether rising star Benny Benack III's third album as leader is a charm (that is up to the listener), it is definitely a charmer, with delightful turns by trumpeter (and vocalist) Benack and pianist Emmet Cohen complementing stellar performances by a number of well-known and talented guest artists.

This is basically a quintet date (Benack, Cohen, tenor saxophonist Ruben Fox, bassist Russell Hall, drummer Kyle Poole) enriched by star turns along the way by tenors Chad Lefkowitz-Brown and Michael Stephenson (who also sings), trumpeter/vocalist Bria Skonberg and guitarist Peter Bernstein. Cohen, another up-and-coming young lion, is showcased prominently throughout (thumbs up for that), dueting with Benack on Meredith Willson's "Gary, Indiana" (as does Bernstein on the sardonic "Thank You for the Heartache" and Hall on "American Woman").

As Benack is listed on the jacket as composer and arranger, he presumably wrote those numbers as well as the seven other originals (on five of which he sings, showing considerable proficiency in that area as well). In fact, Benack and Skonberg's vocal and trumpet interplay on Duke Ellington's "In a Mellow Tone" is one of the album's highlights. Another is the Benack/Stephenson duet on the saucy finale, "Pretty Eyed Baby," a throwback to the repartee of Louis Jordan, Jay McShann, Slim Gaillard and other hipsters of a bygone era.

"Third Time's the Charm" is a sunny opener, its Dixie-bred framework underscoring a pleasing vocal by Benack and earnest solos by Fox and Cohen balancing his luminous trumpet. Benack sings again (and quite well) on the standard "I'll Never Fall in Love Again," then welcomes Bernstein on board for the light-hearted "Scootin,'" Chad Lefkowitz-Brown for the likable "Catching Drift." Bernstein returns for "Heartache" and Benack's "Jade," Lefkowitz-Brown for the mild-tempered "Twilight Blue."

"Gary, Indiana" is next, followed by "In a Mellow Tone" and the Tom Jones mega-hit, "It's Not Unusual," featuring another admirable vocal by Benack, excellent solo by Fox, overdubbed "duet" by Benack on trumpet and voice. Stephenson weighs in on the buoyant "Roylike," on which Cohen switches to the more soft-pedaled Fender Rhodes. Three more ardent Benack vocals ("Jade," "American Woman," "Giselle," the last two featuring Russell's bass) precede the nimble "Pretty Eyed Baby." It is a handsome windup to a thoroughly resplendent and agreeable third time out by the virtuosic Benny Benack III and his chameleon-like convoy.

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