Ya know, just when I thought that today’s crop of musicians was sounding pretty good, I get this 1976 recording of trumpeter Woody Shaw in concert with Louis Hayes/dr, Junior Cook/ts, Ronnie Mathews/p and Stafford James/dr and I realize that my tastes have been diluted over the years. This album boil over with excitement, energy, talent and muscular melodicism that makes today’s artists sound like they’ve been eating too much hormone-injected foods.
Shaw, Hayes and Cook are all alumni from the Horace Silver School of the hard bop quintet, and Mathews’ stint with Max Roach didn’t exactly do him any harm. All the pieces here stretch out between 9-12 minutes with every note humming like a Shelby Cobra. An Aggressive modal piece like “The Moontrane” has Shaw searing on his trumpet while Mathews creates an ivory avalanche, while “Obsequious” has Cook creating volcanic lava streaming down the volcanic slopes. The rhythm team is as crisp as an Armani suit on “Book’s Bossa” and creates a hip funk back beat on “Sun Bath.” Shaw himself is a master throughout. He can emit heat like a flamethrower but is also able to put on his gloves and create an aria as on “Invitation.” He sounds confident and driven with every moment he has air in the mouthpiece. This is music that keeps you interested in jazz and makes you hope for a return to visions that are similar.
High Note Records