Drummer Dave Robbbins leads a vintage sounding hard bopping team of Steve Holy/b, Chris Gestrin/p along with a rich front line of tenorist Mike Allen, trumpeter Brad Turner and trombonist Rod Murray through a toe tapping collection of originals and covers.
Robbins displays his wares well with a flexible workout on “Ode To Drums” before sliding into a hip workout with Allen bopping away. Holy and Gestrin are nimble and quick, jumping over the candlestick during “Joan of Art” while the team swaggers on “Roadhouse” and snaps on the deep groove of “Upper Management.” The horns create a warm lather on the soulful “Spies” and have Turner in a glowing mood on the elegiac “Ages.” The boys have fun with a salsa’d read of the Dave Brubeck Quartet classic on the lively “Take Cinco” as well as sliding safely into third with a hook on The Beatles’ “Can’t Buy Me Love.” A toe tapper’s delight.