Trombonist
Josh Roseman
should get high marks merely for bringing together the impressive cast of musicians on this date, who then execute his sophisticated charts with consummate sympathy and precision, with no apparent ego-tripping or stepping on one another's musical toes. The
Josh Roseman Unit
itself consists of
Roseman
plus the veteran
Peter Apfelbaum
on tenor sax, flute and organ,
Barney McCall
on keyboards and "
dub
tactics,"
Ben Monder
on guitar,
Jonathan Maron
on bass, and
Billy Kilson
on drums. However, no less than 17 additional musicians are listed as "special guests," including heavy-hitting young Turks such as
Chris Potter
on saxophone,
Liberty Ellman
Ben Perowsky
on drums, and
Mark Feldman
on violin.
After a brief
"Organ Invocation,"
the program starts rather subversively with
"Sedate Remix,"
a piece that could superficially fit into the current "
smooth jazz
" radio format, with its loping, vaguely Latin beat, and creamy, mellow ensemble work. But closer attention reveals some quirks that make even this opening piece much more than routine MOR fodder -- subtle little wah-wah touches on electric guitars, some dissonant flute voicings that suggest a
Gil Evans
influence, contrapuntal string passages, and a surprisingly fierce alto sax solo from
Myron Walden
. The subversion carries through to the next piece, which is propelled by understated but insistent
funk
rhythms from bass, drums and miscellaneous percussion, and continued attention to textural and compositional detail. The effect of some of these opening pieces is that of a kind of hyper-smooth
jazz
--
turned inside out, or nudged into a parallel
reality where restraint and civility doesn't equate with boredom.
's own playing fits right in, as he's a prominent voice on the recording, but he never isolates himself from the larger purpose of the ensemble, and never takes the attitude of "hey, I'm the leader on this date, and if I want to do ten minutes of 'outside' blowing on this piece, by golly, I'm going to do it."
Later pieces on the CD are bolder stylistically, from the
reggae
-flavored
"Long Day, Short Night"
to the
"Bitches Brew"
-style
on
"Meera,"
where the bass clarinet of
Jay Rodrigues
summons the spirit of
Bernie Maupin
. On
"Prospect,"
an opening touch of douss n'gouni imparts a Middle Eastern flavor. The final piece,
"Regression,"
serves as a showcase for
's soulful, slow-burning 'bone work, but as usual, it's the composition and the arrangement that truly distinguish the music, with the percussion percolating, flutes languidly wailing, and both acoustic and electric guitars emerging periodically with concise, tasty licks. If all those so-called "
" radio stations played music like this, they'd be giving
enthusiasts something worthy of their attention. ~ Bill Tilland