BFT253 - April

[tkeith]

Hola!  Matthew (new guy presenting this month) is having issues logging in (got locked out b/c he tried to use his screen name).  I'm starting the thread for him and we're hoping he'll be along shortly.

Available here:  https://thomkeith.net/blindfold-tests/2025-blindfold-tests/

[felser]

Thanks Thom and Matthew!  Quick scan through the cuts reveals that this sounds like a bracing listening experience!  Lots of flute.

[T.D.]

Based on a preliminary quick scan conducted at work, this BFT will be most enjoyable!

[felser]

1 – Pleasant enough but faded into the background for me on the soprano solo.  The recitation seems to have great meaning to the speaker, though I’m not sure what he was referring to.

2 – Stylistically, this is certainly in my wheelhouse, all Coltrane/Sanders-ish.  The alto/soprano combo makes me think of the Grubbs Brothers (The Visitors), but I don’t think it’s them.  I think I’m familiar with the song (though not the version), just have to remember what it is.  Very strong cut overall, I hope I have it on the shelves somewhere!  This one will bear repeated listening from me.

3 -  Nice lighter follow up to the previous cut.   The guitar solo to me is just functional, though I like his tone and his comping.  The saxophone solo is excellent, a modern player who nonetheless listened to Ben Webster in his formation.  Maybe Joe Lovano?

4 – Very dramatic!  I like it fine, though it’s not my “thing”.

5 – “Straight No Chaser”, not familiar with  this version.   First thought was Herbie Mann,  but I don’t think it’s him.  Another pleasant cut, though the bass soloing goes on much too long.

6 – I want to like it.  I prefer the flute on this to the one on the previous cuts.  Cut is leaning too much on sort of clunky Afro-Cuban rhythms, though not without its appeals.  Enjoying the organ and especially the vibes when they show up.  An unlikely spot for the “A Love Supreme” riff to show up mid-song.  But then it just sort of ends without resolution or fade, so in the end it’s not a winner for me.

7 – Really good for what it is, but not my sort of thing at all.

8 – More to my liking.  Up the alley of those Grant Green 70’s BN albums where he played the best hits of the day with excellent small group backing.  Not much improvisation on those, but great sounding music.  I listen to them frequently as background music, and could see myself listening to this also. Really enjoying this, wouldn’t mind having it on my shelves, along with cut #2.  

9 – No thanks. Sounds like mash-up of several songs, eventually landing on “Truckin’”, but by way of “Green Onions” and “Peter Gunn”.  I like all of those songs, but not this. 

10 – Not for me.   Can’t relate at all to this cut except for the trumpet solo.

Thanks for the interesting BFT, and I especially await the reveal or ID of cuts 2 and 8.

 

[Matthew Wade Shapiro]

My name is Matthew Shapiro, the guy who curated this playlist. Looking forward to hearing more feedback!

[T.D.]

#3 is a tune I strongly associate with Rahsaan, though (a) it's surely not him on this selection; (b) I can't recall the name of the piece, or the recording I (possibly wrongly) have in mind. 🥴

[JSngry]

1 hour ago, Matthew Wade Shapiro said:

My name is Matthew Shapiro, the guy who curated this playlist. Looking forward to hearing more feedback!

Howdy! Let's have fun!!!

[Dub Modal]

Greetings welcome Matthew! Thanks for putting one of these together. 

1. Love the intro. Is the flautist the lead? Obviously a new production, and a glossy one at that. Love all the elements here. Bassist is a highlight, while the pianist seems content to blend in, not a bad thing. I'm not sure if the soprano sax player is the same as the flautist at the moment. They're together at the end but it could be dubbed? That sax was on point though regardless. 

2. Sounds like another recent production based on the drumming and how it's recorded. Piano sound is excellent. Great playing. No guesses. 

3. Like a lot of what's going on in the beginning here. Dave Stryker maybe? One thing about this production is that I'm listening to the guitarist's comping as much as the horn solo bc the volume levels are just about even. Makes following the horn a little difficult, which is a shame bc they're playing well. Same thing during the bass solo although the guitarist has toned down a bit. 

4. So far all of these sound like recent recordings. Nice. Oh no - strings! And dramatic ones at that. Oof. Sorry, those take some of the fun out of it for me. I thought the piano intro was building into something pretty interesting but the strings and tympanis bring in an orchestral seriousness that falls a little flat for me. YMMV. Soundtrack composition? 

5. Monk - Straight No Chaser. But with flute and live. Interesting. Spaulding? Good little session here. 

6. Sounds like Santana. More flute! Woot! Live again as well. With a vibes player. I dig the tune. Familiar but I can't name it. Synth/organ player adds some welcomed texture and dimension. I'm wishing there was more percussion to lively up this backing beat which is a little metronome-ish. 

7. Rapping vocals reminiscent of Digable Planets. I'm sensing some West Coast vibes from their cadence as well. I wouldn't mind hearing something like this live. Soprano sax again FTW. 

8. Reminds me of latter day Chico Hamilton songs but a little smoother around the edges. Maybe it's one of those? I love those albums btw. More hit than miss IMO. The guitarist is playing well and the organ is accenting effectively. This is some Sunday afternoon chill out music for sure. 

9. Tried and true blues rhythm. A little derivative but what isn't these days. Playing is professional. Guitar takes this to rock territory, while the sax has that retro R&B vibe going. 

10. Vocals related to Emmit Till maybe? Effective! Music is good too. No guesses though. 

Hard to guess a lot of these but appreciate the what I think is majority newer selections. Kudos man and thanks again 🍻

[Milestones]

Number 2 is Coltrane's "Liberia."  I imagine it's pretty recent, and can be found on one of the many Coltrane tribute albums--or can be viewed as jazz standard (as it should).  I was thinking it's a bit like Kenny Garrett, but certainly not Kenny on his own Trane tribute. 

Good stuff.  You can't beat Coltrane himself, but I nearly always enjoy others playing his music.  

Number 3...this tune sounds very familiar.  Rather good tune, nice performance.  That does sound quite a bit like Lovano--most of the time, but not always.  I don't think it's him.  It seems to me that many tenor saxophonists have adopted elements of his style.  

[felser]

5 hours ago, Milestones said:

Number 2 is Coltrane's "Liberia."  I imagine it's pretty recent, and can be found on one of the many Coltrane tribute 

Track #1 from this. Track #9 on my December BFT!  No wonder it sounded so familiar and so good to me, LOL!  The whole album is strong, but the cuts with the guest artist greatly benefit from his presence.

Edited April 2 by felser

[clifford_thornton]

On 4/2/2025 at 10:05 AM, Matthew Wade Shapiro said:

My name is Matthew Shapiro, the guy who curated this playlist. Looking forward to hearing more feedback!

Welcome!

#2 & #3 both feel very familiar but I am struggling to place them. Just took a brief gander overall, will hopefully have time to report back in more detail soon.

[felser]

20 hours ago, felser said:

Track #1 from this. Track #9 on my December BFT!  No wonder it sounded so familiar and so good to me, LOL!  The whole album is strong, but the cuts with the guest artist greatly benefit from his presence.

I mean track #2!

Edited April 3 by felser

[T.D.]

OK, #3 is the tune Black Diamond written by Milton Sealey, which I know only in the RRK version from Rip, Rig and Panic. The BFT selection is of course another recording.

Too early in the month to sleuth...I'll try to reason something out.

Edited April 7 by T.D.

[Matthew Wade Shapiro]

OK, so far y'all got one (song and artist) and two (song only).....reveal is, as always, at the end of the month.

Edited April 7 by Matthew Wade Shapiro

[Matthew Wade Shapiro]

...I stand corrected. One (both song and artist) and four (song only).

[clifford_thornton]

Well, I had zero guesses on who any of the performers were, but here's my take:

1. I like this more than I expected I would -- the flutist is more than capable with a bright sound and creative improvisational lines. Certainly a very recent production, and the rhythm section is solidly in the pocket. No guesses, but I enjoyed it.

2. Been guessed, but good to hear it again and it's interesting to now know who's part of the ensemble. I will admit I'd not known of Lakecia Benjamin before this BFT and am impressed.

3. The tune has been identified and this is an excellent rendition, but I can't hazard a guess as to who the performers are. I'd imagine it's somewhat recent (within the last 20-30 years) but beyond that, am not sure. The bassist and tenor saxophonist are certainly hitting some areas that are within my wheelhouse.

4. Not really my thing at all as far as the arrangement & composition go. But everything has its place. No guesses, probably would not revisit.

5. Spaulding is an interesting guess but I don't really think it is him. Ebullient rendition of a classic tune, though the pianist's solo doesn't really do it for me.

6. As I was talking to a fellow board member the other day, the Santana feel is strong here, though it's certainly not them (him?). Once the vocals began I checked out.

7. I do understand the valid connection between jazz and hip hop but this isn't my cuppa tea. It does seem very contemporary.

8. Recent guitar-organ fare, I recall being sent some things like this by the PosiTone label when I was reviewing albums. No guesses. The guitarist presents ideas in a cohesive manner that I could see going places, but the overall flavor isn't too distinctive.

9. I guess this would be crowd-pleasing in a concert setting, but again, I don't get it. Stevie Wonder's "Higher Ground" reimagined as a jazz-funk tune? Sorta. Personally, I only lasted a few minutes.

10. Okay, the sentiment is admirable and the delivery is okay -- I'd gather the poet/speaker has spent a fair amount of time listening to how Amiri Baraka did things, at least on some level -- but the music doesn't deliver and feels quite, I don't know, not compelling, which is weird given the subject. Trumpet has some Hannibal-isms but I highly doubt it's him. Another Ropeadope release?

[JSngry]

I didn't love a lot of what was on here, but pretty much all of it caught my attention for various reasons. As a result, I sleuthed a lot, but the results did not change my initial responses, which I will stick to, with only minimal exception. The FULL exception for this will be the last selection, which imo is borderline epic and deserves full attention ASAP!

TRACK ONE - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bolton,_Mississippi 

Bolton, Mississippi is a real place but with a population of <500 people, I don't know who on this record would be from there. I like the music well enough, it has a real-enough "down home" feel, although also not really "developed (looking at you bassist). The soprano has a Grover feeling underneath it all, and I mean that as a compliment. Grover was a man of the people, and this music is definitely by the people. I like it, yeah! Not gonna rush right out an buy it, but I do like it.

TRACK TWO - Felser BFT Redux. Lakeshia Benjamin is a bold dresser with a musical intent to match. I say she should be encouraged on both counts! And Gary Bartz can hopefully give us a Great Final Act, sounds like he's more than paid some pretty deep dues over the years, been there, done that, all of it.

TRACK THREE - No idea, really. Nice tune, very nice. Randy Weston, maybe? These soloists, though, not sure about their time, the ideas are not necessarily being executed as much in a pocket as they could be, sometimes they feel just a little bit rushed. Plus, some space wouldn't hurt anything, ya' know? The tenor is a bit better in that regard, good tone and a more developed sense of speaking. I hope these are younger players? This is type of thing where you miss working road bands, the cahnce to go to work every night and work out the kinks and clear away the clouds. But oh well, that ain't here no more. But the bassist and drummer are past all that!

TRACK FOUR - No thanks. Where's the movie?

TRACK FIVE - This sounds like Herbie Mann on flute, from back in the day when he still played bop. And that's not a diss, just a speculative observation. And this is obviously not from those days. Piano has waaay too much of the OP Gung-Ho feel for my taste. This guitarist is the most interesting player for me, but he seems to be playing in a different zone than the rest of the band and just walks a few blocks and then pops into a bar for a few drinks until the parade passes by. I mean no insult when saying that this sounds "Canadian".

TRACK SIX - Hello Nasty! I was surprised, but that explains it!

TRACK SEVEN - I certainly did like this, in spite of it's less-than-fully-fulfilled potential. But the groove is good (especially the drumming), and the piano progression is definitely fresher than old standards. The soprano solo spoke to me of Kenny Garrett and further sleuthing confirmed that it is. This record is nice enough, but hey, I saw h9im and his group at the Detroit Jazz Festival two years ago, outdoors, in front of a full/fully appreciative hometown crowd, and he played the everloving BEJESUS out of stuff like this. He was holding church with it, and keep in mind that a church needs both preacher and congregation to feed off of and back to each other, and that is fully what was going on there. On this record, not so much, but records ain't the WHOLE story, ok?

TRACK EIGHT - Very nice retro sound. I thought I had heard this tune before, and I had - it's a Neal Creque tune first recorded by Grant Green, with a fuller isntrumentation, that's all I will say about that. But does this have lyrics? It seems like it should! And I wish that a group like this would go back and see what can be pulled out of "Cafe Reggio".

TRACK NINE. I disliked this one so much that I sleuthed, I think that's a first...Ok, this player (who is not David Murray) is somebody I've been aware of in different contexts over the year, definitely a seasoned pro deserving of respect overall. But this one....yuck. Did Don Was put him up to this?

TRACK TEN - All in here, full frontal SPIRIT. And very much in the pocket, musically and vocally and verbally. Google AI can often give you very straightforward answer and when you ask it about "jazz inspired Emmet Till" it will first tell you about Wadada and then Ernest Dawkins. And Dawkins it is, with a full suite that was premiered at the Velvet Lounge, and for this recording, Paris: https://ernestdawkins.bandcamp.com/album/un-till-emmett-till

 

I truly feel this one, the holy defiance trumping and ultimately triumphing over the triteness and vulgarity of lowly humans. I will be getting the record ASAP.

More than a few surprises here. Please play again, thank you!

 

[Matthew Wade Shapiro]

On 4/13/2025 at 2:54 PM, JSngry said:

This record is nice enough, but hey, I saw h9im and his group at the Detroit Jazz Festival two years ago, outdoors, in front of a full/fully appreciative hometown crowd, and he played the everloving BEJESUS out of stuff like this. He was holding church with it, and keep in mind that a church needs both preacher and congregation to feed off of and back to each other, and that is fully what was going on there. On this record, not so much, but records ain't the WHOLE story, ok?

So it was a good set? I was at that particular DJF and I skipped Kenny's set (I've seen him three other times and he always outdid himself) in favor of someone else (who has a song in this blindfold test). Glad to hear he's still as mind-blowing as ever.

On 4/13/2025 at 2:54 PM, JSngry said:

TRACK TEN - All in here, full frontal SPIRIT. And very much in the pocket, musically and vocally and verbally. Google AI can often give you very straightforward answer and when you ask it about "jazz inspired Emmet Till" it will first tell you about Wadada and then Ernest Dawkins. And Dawkins it is, with a full suite that was premiered at the Velvet Lounge, and for this recording, Paris: https://ernestdawkins.bandcamp.com/album/un-till-emmett-till

 

Bingo.

[JSngry]

I thought it was a great set, made more great by the active engagement of the audience. It indeed felt like church more than a few times!

[T.D.]

Peeked at Jim's post on #10 after listening and drawing blanks.

My first reaction to the piece, after about 20 seconds, was "Oh dear...", not digging the male speaker. On full listening, I loved everything else about it, especially arrangement, female vocals, trumpet and trombone. A certain irony in the lyrics brought to mind somebody like Eugene McDaniels, who surely is not involved.

Would never have ID'd anyone, even though I own a couple of the leader's albums and an extremely well-known drummer/percussionist is included. After a couple of listens I think it's a great cut, but the male vocals would probably keep it off "heavy rotation" in the household.

Edited Tuesday at 01:23 AM by T.D.

[JSngry]

No need for details, but the poem/,recitation of the male vocal rings true to various life experiences I've had l. Yes it's horrible, yes it ends in a tragic murder. But Emmit still wins because he DENIES the murderers their evil desire. And believe me, denying people like that the satisfaction of bending that knee...it ain't a legal triumph, but in the battle for your soul - THEY LOSE.

You can never let them win.

[Matthew Wade Shapiro]

5 hours ago, JSngry said:

I thought it was a great set, made more great by the active engagement of the audience. It indeed felt like church more than a few times!

Were you at the '99 Detroit Jazz Festival? That was the first time I saw Kenny. I went with a friend of mine and we were both so blown away by what we had heard that we didn't even listen to any music during the ride home.

[JSngry]

Year before last was my first time making it. Our daughter has moved up there so that cuts the expense considerably!

I think it's a great festival, and all free, hey..

I don't know that KG has made a record that shows him at full power in guite a while. But live...yeah!

[Matthew Wade Shapiro]

Not ALL free...there's parking, food, buying CD's...