Ellington Orchestra alumnus Bob Ferrel demonstrates he learned much from his stint in the legendary orchestra. Here, he leads a big, bold and brassy big band consisting of Vinnie Cutro/tp, Rob Henke/tp, Joe Ford/as, Frank Elmo/as-ts, Roy Nicolosii/sax-tp, Sharp Radway-Hector Davila/p, Daryl Johns-Ruben Rodriguea/b, Steve Johns/dr and Frank Valdes/perc through some swinging originals and covers.
Ferrel himself shows his buttery tone and impressive chops on “My Secret Love” and the team shows it’s ability to get frisky during “Soul Bop.” The horn section is delicious during “Alter Ego” with a nice workout by Dwight West and the brass creates a rich rice pilaf on “Poetry.” Molasses voiced Dwight West takes you to Kansas City along with Frank Elmo’s swinging tenor on a swaying “Every Day I Have The Blues” and bops with delight with the brass on “Yardbird Suite” while “Don’t Go To Strangers” is a velvet patch of love. In the pocket, with lots of loose change.