David Glasser/Clark Terry/Barry Harris Project: Uh! Oh!

Uh! Oh! joins Wycliffe Gordon's Slidin' Home (N-H 2001) and Byron Stripling's StriplingNow! as the third in the Nagel-Heyer 2000 series of contemporary mainstream jazz. Known principally for documenting the traditional mainstream of Louis Armstrong, the Hamburg-based Nagel-Heyer spreads its considerable wings with this series. Uh! Oh! is the most fully realized contemporary offering to date from the label, showcasing the considerable composition talents of altoist Dave Glasser. Adding old timers Clark Terry and Barry Harris elevate these sides into a superstar stratosphere. The results are purely empathic, the principals all interacting at the same high level that provides the listener a truly pleasurable experience, particularly on the ballads. But don't think the slow stuff will slow you down, Glass and company can play Bebop ("52nd Street Theme) and can otherwise swing (title track, "the Nearness of You"). Roy Hargrove is beautiful on the Glasser-penned ballad "Charise" (obviously gearing up for his own Verve ballad offering). All in all, a most interesting recording with plenty of swing and romance.

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