tkeith

Granted.

Track 01 - Yes, please. Definitely has a Ra feel to it. Cornet? Seems beefier than a trumpet, so much that when I first heard it I was thinking Clark Terry, which is clearly NOT the case. Now it sounds distinctly trumpety. Ooo! Sax... a clue. I don't know it, but I don't care, I want it. Track 02 - Getting a Cecil/Joe Bonner vibe. First thougth was Bobbi Humphrey on flute, but that's wrong. Tenor owes a bit of love to Pharoah, but doesn't quite have his energy. Like the Coltrane-y thing, but not sure I'd do a whole night of that. Not Joe. Almost sounds like Tootie Heath on drums, feel-wise, but the kit sound is different. Safe to say this is not this guy's typical style? Vamp is full Bonner, but the solo was defintiely not. I think you're fooling me here. Is this a genre-bending cut? Two for two, large father. Track 03 - That strange, Mel Lewis sounding cymbal. The tone is beefy like Ari Brown, but I'm not sure it's him (could be early Ari). Not Ari. More practice, but I'm digging it, for the most part. Definitely been some time put in. That raises the question, who's the Elvin clone? Seems like a sound I should know, but don't. It's certainly unique. I love me some drums, but this cat is almost wearing me out. Loses some steam towards the end of the tenor solo. Nice bass solo. Parts where I want to say Ronnie Boykins, and parts that sound like our own Zac Francis (time-wise). I'm curious as hell. Three for three, and I've gotten nothing. Something weird about the rhythm of the bass. Really sounds like NOT a "jazz" player. Is this another genre-bender? (I may keep typing that on each tune just to see how closely people are reading. ). Alright, which Chicagoan is this that I need to know more about? Track 04 - Oh, that vamp is familiar from the get go. Beefy bass. Drums are weird. Almost that clunky Han Bennink feel, but seems a bit more locked in. Maybe Smiley Winters. That sure sounds like Woody. Rhodes suggests 70s, so that opens up many possibilities. Behind the trumpet, really sounds like Max, but more like someone playing like Max. You're gonna hate me... is that Stanley Clarke? I withdraw the question -- that IS Stanley Clarke. Not Chick. Tenor is digging in. At first, I was unsure. Reminds me a bit of Carlos Garnett, but with more fire. Not Max. Not precise enough. Precision be damned, this guy is hitting it. What happened to Stanley, there? Was worried we were going down Trane/Elvin path. Glad it didn't. Four for four, MF! And now the press roll sounds like Blakey. Don't know the flute, other than it's once again NOT Bobbi Humphrey. I'll take Woody, Stanley, and a cup of disappointment from there. Track 05 - THAT is some low end. Somebody loves Dolphy (not a bad thing). This has a heavy Chicago feel to me. Maybe Muhal. I may have it, but don't immediately recognize it. At first, I wasn't sold on the feel, but by the halfway point, I'm in. Gotta be him, doesn't it? Bass is monstrous. I'm fishing, but assuming i'm right on Muhal, could that be Fred? That would explain the BIGness. Yeah, I'll take this one, too. Track 06 - Gee, thought this was Equal Time playing The Rain, at first. Oh... wait. Clearly that's Eddie. Narrows it considerably. It's not us, and it's not the late 60s blue note. Tenor is in tune, so it's not the other record Eddie gave me. Process of elimination, it's got to be A Minute With Miles (the one I'm least familiar with), but not that track. Oh, man... no mistaking Eddie. Such a bad MF. I WANT this to be me -- he gives such an energy to feed off of. Just remembered who the pianist is on this -- talk about an Illusion of Grandeur! Love the exploratory nature of the tenor. Reaching without getting in the way. Very Mal Waldron-y ending. ❤️ Track 07 - Pizzicato cello? Not digging it. I mean, I appreciate the unique feel, but I'm not really connecting with it. Drums, in particular, seems very disconnected. Maybe George Lewis on 'bone? Unique alto, but not a voice I'm familiar with. Works here, but seems different from the rest of it (like the home address is closer to main street). Odd instrumentation to say the least. Halfway in and still struggling to find the groove, though. Not without merit, but it's missing that spot in the gut that makes me full on happy. Track 08 - Sure sounds like Dave Holland. That angular style that in the wrong setting rubs me, but it works here. Wait, that's not him. About the 2 minute mark there's a tell in the low-end -- that's Fred Hopkins. Just shy of 3:00, there's that plucky thing -- that's Fred, no doubt. Not sold on the guitarist. I don't think a Chicago guy on drums. Not a heavy enough feel to be Reggie Nicholson, but that's as close as I got. Track 09 - Horace? Man, this is killin'. Doesn't quite have Horace's bite on the comping, but it certainly COULD be his tune. Tight arrangement -- like the way they wove in the improv. Delightful. More of that, please. Track 10 - Blue in Green. Terrible sound. Couldn't distinguish whether lead instrument was alto, clarinet or flute for about a minute. Kudos for doing it differently, but I'm not sure I'm on board. Not feeling any connection to the tune. Based on that and the fact that I REALLY don't care for the alto sound, is this Braxton? Feels like a lot of noodling without much direction. And for that reason, I'm out. 90 seconds to go and not sure I'm going to make it. Gotta be Braxton -- very few people cause this visceral reaction. At least he's consistent. Toward the end, bass finally stops noodling and it's almost tolerable (if you could turn down the alto). Nope. Track 11 - Ah, there ya go. I know this, I swear I do. We've definitely listened to this and gushed over it, but damned if I can put my finger on it. AGGRESSIVE sax. Leaning towards Carlos Garnett. Man, THAT is a bitch of a trumpet solo. LIterally singing along (yeah, you don't want to hear that). I definitely know this, but not able to put names to it, which is probably a huge clue. Got that McCoy left hand down. Line about 4:15 is a bucket list line. Billy Harper played that last time I saw him with The Cookers and I've been oozing for it since. Damnit. I know that head, too. I'm glad it's the end of the month, because I KNOW this and should be able to spit it right out. Damn it! Track 12 - Almost a Zappa feel here (though, I dare say a higher degree of inspiration). Has that business in the drums, though. Maybe Pheroan AkLaff? Don't care for the hyper-compression of the recording, but they got the feel right. Track 13 - Tomorrow Never Knows. Not sure if I'm onboard, yet, but it IS better than the Phil Collins version. Reminds me of an O.C. Smith record I had as a kid, but the voice doesn't seem quite raspy enough to be him. Definitely a better fit for the first half of the test, but what was in my alley was IN my alley. Apologies for taking four full weeks to get to it.

Done, sir. Also, just a note -- haven't forgotten about the archive project, but life has put it on the back burner. Once the weather up here turns, officially, I will get cranking on it (trying to handle the outdoor duties before it's gets ridiculously cold).

March, May and August now claimed.

That's it, Dan -- you went too far when you hit Felser below the belt. I'm going with the 12-tone masters for my next BFT. 🤣

2025 is book-ended.

Done, sir.

Just what it says! I'll do my best to honor everyone's request, but it's first-come, first-serve. I'd like to try to keep Bill's practice of not having more than one BFT within a 12-month period as much as possible (e.g. -- Tim shouldn't sign up for January [which, of course, he will now do]. As people claim spots I will update the list as an edit to this post. Note: Thanks to @Dan Gould for nudging me from my fall coma to create this thread -- I had spaced it, entirely. And look, I just ended a sentence with an adverb. #GottaBeARebel January - @Dan Gould February - @Joe March - @clifford_thornton April - May - @mjzee June - July - August - @Ken Dryden September - October - November - @JSngry Decemeber - @felser

Enjoyed a bunch of this, particularly the first half. Things got weird after the middle, and some of it was just plain lost on me. Not a single guess, but certainly a handful of things I'm intrigued by. Track 01 - Well THIS is fun. Very strange sound to the recording. Thin to the point of almost being distant. I like the sound with the vibes. Trumpet solo was decent, but piano left me feeling nada. Fairly straight-ahead and well done. I'm not in love with the drums, but neither am I put off. Tune, as I said, is fun. No idea who this is. Track 02 - Certainly sounds Blue Note-y. I don't think it's Horace, but the pianist would be flattered by the comment. Not sure on the trumpet. I thought the tenor was familiar, but now I've decided he isn't. This is a very enjoyable cut. It's not coming to the desert island with me, but it's thoroughly enjoyable. Track 03 - This checks a lot of boxes that should rub me, but I LOVE this. Has the feel of the better Vandermark stuff, but I don't think it's that. This just works. Yes, please. Track 04 - This one suffers from what the last one avoided. Incredible ability. Could almost be Rob Brown, but doesn't seem musical enough. Acrobatic technique to be sure, but I just don't care. Has the same thing that Steve Coleman had that always bugged me. Where's the story, man? Like the vibes better, and can almost get my ears around the rhythm section, but the whole thing just feels too math-y. Track 05 - Flawless facility. Maybe Noah Preminger? I think it's an address in that neighborhood. Full respect for it, but I'm not in love with it. It's their thing and they mean it. I'm not sure I'm here for it, though. Track 06 - A lot of angular stuff in here. This one works. I'm not in love with the violin, but it's doing the job. The bass, though -- all day. Track 07 - Another fun one. Kind of light, but I like it. The trumpet sound is kind of like Ahmed Abdullah, but the technique is Chuck Mangione. That's not a compliment. I like it, but it's maybe a tick below prime time. the overall feel keeps it in a good place. It's a very social feel. Track 08 - Another fun one, but not really grabbing me. In fact, it was three-and-a-half minutes in before I realized that. It's okay, but doesn't really stand out. Respect that it's live. Track 09 - This one is okay. Not my bag, but interesting. Couldn't listen to too much of it, though. Track 10 - And here's more. Nope. Ran Blake, maybe? Angular, but what 's the point? OOOoo! Look at the noises I can make with my shiny thing. Just, no. Track 11 - This test has taken a turn for the worse and brought my mood with it. Why? Gets better with the full band. A LOT better. Not sure it saves it, but it's a vast improvement. I'm sure there is a story behind it, but I'm not sure we needed it. Track 12 - I like this, but that's because I like Pharoah, too. No, really, I like this a lot. Hey Tim, maybe a reboot of Equal Time as a one-off? Track 13 - Different. A bit odd, but I appreciate it. No idea what it is. Not sure i the horns add to it, but I enjoy the hell out of it. Vocals lose me a bit. Track 14 - Nice bass. Not in love with the guitar. Okay, some sort of folk crossover, but it works -- and owes a big debt to that beautiful bass. Okay, heavy accent on the singer, but can't pin what it is. Track 15 - Pleasant, but not gripping me. And the tenor comes in and proves to me that this is self-serving more than it is musical. Just not my thing. Very little Elvis in this music. Despite the last comment, I enjoyed listening. Thanks for the ear candy.

With apologies, this month, along with the rest of summer got VERY quicky away from me. 1 - Off the bat, sounds a bit like Sonny Criss, but hasn't quite got that *thing* he had. It's in 3, so I love it. I know that sound, though. Oh! James Spaulding, of course. One of those guys who started strong and got better with age. Drums are busy, but it works. On the phones and the bass sound is a bit... I dunno, off. I like what I'm hearing in terms of ideas, but the sound sounds... maybe it's direct? Dunno, it's a bit cab-forward. Almost sounds like a fretless. Patient pianist. Guessing this might be a Muse date with that sound. Drums have almost an Elvin thing going, but doesn't seem quite that tight. Very curious. Seems like there may be a hole in my JS collection. 2 - Know not what it is, but we used to eat at a Chinese restaurant in the area that would play stuff sort of like this -- not QUITE Jazz, but rubbing elbows with the obvious overtones of traditional music. This reminds me of that, and now my stomach aches. Other than that, I quite like this. Horns don't bully the violin, and that line played on the violin is absolutely haunting. 3 - Nope. "I have no kick against modern Jazz, unless they try to play it too darn fast, and change the beauty of the melody, until it sounds just like a symphony..." This suffers from that... greatly. Reminds me of that period where McCoy played everything too damned fast... only this isn't McCoy. [And, if on the off chance I'm wrong about that and it is, my point is proven] 4 - Much better. Don't feel on edge, can just listen. Not sure on the trumpet. Maybe Graham Breedlove? Nice tune, tastefully played. Not sure this is the stuff a desert island collection is built on, but it's quite nice. 5 - A little Ellington -- nice! Never heard this covered before. It is about damned time! No idea who it is, but totally props for the cajones to try this gorgeous Ellington tune. The original has to be one of the great pieces of music written in the 20th Century (worded that way because you can't beat the Ellington arrangement/performance... you just can't). Endless Kudos to this band for playing something DEEP outside the box. 6 - Parisian Thoroughfaire! My favorite Bud tune. Very well executed. Was thinking John McNeil, but now I'm leaning Tom Harrell. No idea on the piano. I'm only slightly familiar with Harrell, but the precision suggests that's a pretty good guess. 7 - [Spins basketball on right index finger] Tune is pretty obvious. Double piano, but something odd in the rhythm of the second guy (almost seemed to lose the thread/tempo). Second exchange same thing -- almost like second person is lagging the beat. Okay, it's consistent, so I'm guessing that's what I'm actually hearing. Kills it for me. 8 - Star Eyes, but damned near fooled me. Like the tenor a lot, but the affected breathiness at the end of a phrase goes ALMOST too far. Shades of Newk. Shades of Red Holloway. Shades of Ricky Ford. Rhythmic precision is beyond the lot of them. Even with the breath thing, this is pretty epic. I think I need this. If this were Dan's test, I'd guess Percy France. 9 - Well done tributary music, but not really my thing. Well done and appreciated, but would likely not queue up a 2nd time. 10 - Maybe my favorite Parker tune. Cymbals on the bridge have me thinking Mel Lewis on drums, but this seems more recent (in terms of recording quality). Well executed take on a classic. Drums are way too busy to be Mel. No idea. 11 - Stella. Like the alto solo. Sounds like Parker on 1/2 speed (which means it's only incredible). Guessing we're off Main St., but not far. Trumpet could be Miles on 1/2 speed. Is this one of those weird things where it's like the best-of-Europe from the same era? Could almost be Max on drums. Whatdawegot here? 12 - Nice feel. Reminiscent of Avishai Cohen but without the need to flex so much. This is lovely. Even the unemployment stick works. 13 - No idea. Kenton-ish arrangement. Pleasant, but almost too much so. Reminders of my grandmother's on Wednesday afternoon. 14 - Sure sounds like Ray Nance' violin. Live and the drums sure make this sound like a JATP date. Not sure. I'll stick with the Ray guess. 15 - My first impressions are Brubeck. And that certainly sounds like Desmond. Clearly live, and not a stellar recording, but the music surely works. A lot to like in this one, Ken. Thanks!

Glad you enjoyed. IMHO, one cannot go wrong with Buddy Tate. Never heard something by him and had a mediocre reaction. He's just a bad MF. After I had pretty extensive oral surgery to remove impacted wisdom teeth, my friend brought me home and got my prescriptions filled. She made sure I'd taken what I was supposed to, and I climbed on my waterbed (this was 1990), and fired up Pharoah Sanders (I believe it was Hum-Allah, Hum-Allah, Hum-Allah) and courtesy of the Percosets, had the single-greatest out-of-body experience of my life, watching me lying on the bed, listening to Pharoah from the corner of the room. #epic

Glad you enjoyed. Something another horn player said to me about Nick: "Nick's maintained his sound. A lot of guys, when they get older, their sound changes, and they don't have that same power they had -- Nick's STILL got that sound."

Well, that was relatively quick. Just a collection of stuff that either caught my ear or was new to me within the last year. Track 01 - Page 44 (Arbuckle) Les Arbuckle The Bush Crew (1994) Les Arbuckle - tenor sax; Mike Stern - guitar; Essiet Okon Essiet - bass; Victor Lewis - drums Les was my sax tech until he left the Boston area for San Diego. Every visit to his shop included some small lesson, just in passing conversation. I appreciate those visits more than I can ever express, because I learned so much in a few short minutes. The 10M I play is Les' old horn which had been set up by the late, great sax tech Ernie Sola. Les can play his ass off, and even though the feel of this album isn't really my bag, I love to hear Les play. Track 02 - Waltz For Trane (Goumas) Nick Goumas Perseverance (2002) Nick Goumas - tenor saxophone; Waldron Ricks - trumpet; Rick Peckham - guitar; Greg Burk - piano; Larry Roland - bass; Peter Moutis - drums Nick is a contemporary of Jerry Bergonzi who taught music in the Nashua, NH school district for ages. He retired a few years back, and I've gotten to know him a bit through a local jam session. We played Lonnie's Lament together the night he laid these two discs (the other is elsewhere in this test) on me. The guy is about 80, still blowing his ass off, and is just another of those pieces in the greater puzzle that it's fun to check in with. Track 03 - Painless (McAll) Barney McAll, Badal Roy, Rufus Cappadocia Vivid! (2017) Barney McAll - keys, kalimba; Rufus Cappadocia - cello; Badal Roy - tabla; Fred Wesley - trombone; Peck Almond - flute, trombone, trumpet; Lefteris Bournias - clarinet; Matt Darriau - kaval; Famoro Dioubaté - balafon; Daniel Moreno - percussion; Mike Sim - tenor/baritone sax; Vishal Vaid - vocals I found my way to McAll's extensive Bandcamp site because he was selling a Billy Harper set. I ended up culling a few things, including this one. The guy is different. He's from Australia, and my introduction to him was a record he did featuring Billy Harper. I later picked up a couple of used discs, one featuring Harper, the other featuring Peter Apfelbaum and Gary Bartz. Both are worth it. This one trends towards afrobeat, but I love Fred Wesley and had to include it. Track 04 - Moon Alley (Tom Harrell) Nick Goumas Moon Alley (2012) Nick Goumas - tenor saxophone; Steve Hunt - piano; Bruce Gertz - bass; Jack Diefendorf - drums Another from Nick. I chose this tune because I learned it in the past year but had never heard anyone cover it (other than the composer, and then just to help me learn it). Figured some would get the tune. Track 05 - Avars (Rocky Boyd) Blue Mitchell Blue's Moods (1960) Blue Mitchell - trumpet; Wynton Kelly - piano; Sam Jones - bass; Roy Brooks - drums You just can't go wrong with Blue Mitchell. Heard this one in the car and had to pull over to make note to include it on this year's test. I was late to the Blue Mitchell game, but he kept cropping up as a sideman in my collection and always had me saying, "Who IS this guy?" So, I added. Track 06 - #20 Ladbroke Square (Tate/Edwards) Buddy Tate Tate-a-Tate (1960) Clark Terry - trumpet; Buddy Tate - tenor saxophone; Tommy Flanagan - piano; Larry Gales - bass; Art Taylor - drums Again, hard to go wrong with Buddy Tate. Not exactly a pick-up band with him, here, either. My introduction to Tate was a record with Warren Vaché in the late 70s, still my favorite version of On Green Dolphin St. Shortly after that, I discovered the Meets Dollar Brand album, and fell in love with HIS work, as well. This tune just grabbed me and said, "Put this in your BFT, MF!" Track 07 - Wide And Blue (Harold McKinney) The Tribe Hometown: Detroit Sessions 1990-2014 Wendell Harrison - tenor saxophone; Marcus Belgrave, Jimmy Owens - trumpet; Kiane Zawadi - trombone, euphonium; Harold McKinney - piano; Reggie Workman - bass; Gayelynn McKinney - drums; Francisco Ali Mora - percussion Tim introduced this one to me. I've always been a sucker for The Tribe, and this disc is no exception. With apologies, I'm sure I stole his preferred track to include in his test later this year. Sorry, man. Track 08 - Le Clit (Redman) Dewey Redman Dewey Redman Quarttet - Live Archival Recording (2002) Dewey Redman - tenor saxophone; Barney McAll - piano; John Menegon - bass; Matt Wilson - drums Another one I picked up from McAll's Bandcamp site. This was his own recording of the date, released with permission of Dewey's family. I wouldn't say there is new ground here, but it's sure good to hear Dewey at this point in time, in this setting. The dude was all about soul and it comes across here. Track 09 - Calvary (trad., arr. by Lewis) James Brandon Lewis Red Lily Quintet For Mahalia, With Love (2023) James Brandon Lewis - tenor saxophone; Kirk Knuffke - cornet; William Parker - bass; Chad Taylor - drums; Chris Hoffman - cello I came to JBL by way of his work with William Parker and was immediately impressed. I got the notification about this release, listened to a couple of tracks and pulled the trigger immediately. This guy is the real deal, and he's in great company here. For me, this guy and Isaiah Collier are the guys right now (for that "next-gen" grouping, anyway). Track 10 - In The Beginning GOD (Ellington) Dwight Trible Cosmic (2011) Dwight Trible - vocals, percussion; John Beasley - piano; Kenneth Crouch - organ; Trevor Ware - bass; Dexter Story - drums, background vocals This is a weird record. I love Trible, and this album has moments, but it's odd. And while I'm not invested in the subject matter here, myself, he certainly seems committed and that's what struck me and led me to include it here. I'm glad to see this guy getting SOME attention recording, but I sure wish there was more of it. Track 11 - Character Building Blues (Kohlhase) Charlie Kohlhase Explorer's Club A Second Live (2024) Charlie Kohlhase - baritone saxophone; Seth Meicht - tenor saxophone; Dan Rosenthal - trumpet; Jeb Bishop - trombone; Josiah Reibstein - tuba; Eric Hofbauer - guitar; Tony Leva - bass; Curt Newton - drums Another local-ish connection here. Charlie is one of the worlds funniest people, and an absolute MF of a composer and saxophonist. The backstory of this recording is epic in its own right (check out Charlie's Bandcamp site), and his writing here shows he's still in top form. If you have the chance, see this band live. Charlie is always entertaining, and Seth Meicht was a bit of a discovery for me -- absolute monster! I know there were lots of exchanges I should have addressed here and didn't, so perhaps we can continue the convo in this thread.

Gotta fill the plate where and when you can, man.

Nay, sir. I do not appear anywhere on this test, but I take that as a HUGE compliment as this player has appeared in multiple Down Beat polls (another HUGE hint). You say "potato," I say "no thanks, I'll have the rice."