Terry Waldo & the Gotham City Band: Treasury Volume 1

Pianist Terry Waldo isn't stuck in the past; he revels in it, as do his eager teammates on Treasury, Vol. 1—the first of three such discourses, according to the album's liner notes—recorded not in jazz's primal era but in May and June 2022 (save for "After You've Gone," recorded in October 2018 with the splendid guest vocalist Veronica Swift). Waldo, a student of jazz from its origins to present-day genres, treads a well-worn path here, reprising bright and enduring themes some of whose origins can be traced back a century or more.

There can't be many jazz enthusiasts of any stripe who aren't familiar with the trad and Dixie staples "Bill Bailey," "Tiger Rag" or "After You've Gone." Perhaps a shade less notable—but no less admirable—are such keepsakes as "I Get the Blues When It Rains," "San" and Jelly Roll Morton's "Wolverine Blues," each of which gains new life in the able hands of Waldo and his groups, which range in size from six to eight.

To add a further note of authenticity, the album's closing number, Scott Joplin's "Maple Leaf Rag," was recorded on vinyl at 78rpm (remember that?) using an original studio horn from the 1920s. The surface noise (another relic from days gone by) enriches the ambience, making it sound much like a recording from the 1920s, not 2022. Clarinetist Dennis Lichtman crafts his finest Omer Simeon impression and the band takes it from there, deftly restoring the rapid-fire "Rag" in all its venerable glory.

Waldo arranged every number save two—"I Get the Blues When It Rains," arrangement by Sam Chess, vocal by Tatiana Eva-Marie—and "Maple Leaf Rag," arranged by Colin Hancock who plays cornet on that number, tenor saxophone on "Yellow Dog Blues." Rounding out the charming program are Doc Cook's "Blame It on the Blues" and "The Frog Song," perhaps the most long-lived item on the menu, whose apt vocal is delivered by the group's able banjo player, Jerron "Blind Boy" Paxton.

Waldo takes a number of solos, each of which is rigorous and tasteful, as are those by Paxton, saxophonist Ricky Alexander, trombonist Jim Fryer, cornetist Mike Davis, bassist Brian Nalepka and drummer Jay Lepley. For those who prefer their jazz well-seasoned and age-defying, Waldo's album is indeed a Treasure, one that imparts the delightful promise of even more amusements to come.

Comments