Ellen Rowe Quartet: Vinton's Cove

Ellen Rowe wears many musical hats, all of which fit her extremely well: pianist, composer, arranger, educator and last but not least, band leader. Rowe supervises an admirable quartet on Vinton's Cove, displaying her sizable skills as writer and arranger while brightening the keyboard as well.

Rowe dons her composer's cap on half a dozen of the album's ten numbers, and wears her arranger's headgear on all of them. Two of the songs include lyrics by the studio date's guest artist, singer Sunny Wilkinson. Completing the handsome program are Kenny Wheeler's gentle "Kind Folk," Joni Mitchell's meditative "Both Sides Now" and the perennial standards "All the Things You Are" and "I'll Remember April."

Besides composing and arranging, Rowe is a splendid pianist, using sharp single-note runs and supple block chords to design bright and clever solos. She is reinforced most often in that area by saxophonist Mike Sakash, even though bassist Dennis Carroll and drummer Pete Siers (who also keep flawless time) are impressive whenever called upon.

Among the session's several high spots, the standards rank highest, performed at exactly the proper tempo and encompassing strong and resourceful solos by Rowe, Sakash (on alto sax), Carroll and Siers (on "I'll Remember April"). Rowe has an ear for an engaging melody, and her best here include the lyrical opening number, "The Loons of Vinton's Cave" (written to honor a pair of said birds who try each year to nest in that area on Maine's Kezar Lake); the lustrous ballad "Refractions," groovy and playful "Clipped in Blues" and carefree "Ebb and Flow." Whatever the mood or manner, Rowe wrests the most viable mileage from the quartet.

Wilkinson sings (quite well) to her own lyrics on "The Phoenix" and "Sylvan Way," while Rowe enlists only the rhythm section on a singular reading of Mitchell's contemplative classic, "Both Sides Now." Sakash plays alto on half a dozen numbers, soprano on "Refractions" and "The Phoenix," and is a pleasure to hear on either instrument. Vinton's Cove is the sixth album under Rowe's name, and she has maintained the same high level of musicianship and commitment on every one. Well worth one's time.