Back in the 70s, almost every jazz artist was “going electric” one way or another. Jazz/rock fusion was at its zenith, and even diehards like Stan Getz succumbed to electric keyboards to “stay with the times.” Tenor saxist JR Monterose was always just on the cusp of making a big name for himself after recording stints with Charles Mingus and Kenny Dorham and releasing some cooking forward thinking material of his own like his classic eponymous Blue Note album. This release from Uptown Records (where DOES this label dig up this stuff?!?) finds the underrated saxist staying true to his God-given calling and going against the prevailing tide with an acoustic team of Hod O’Brien/p, Teddy Kotick/b and Eddie Robinson/dr at a gig at Lark Tavern in Albany (why NOT take Albany?) New York in 1979.
Monterose has a rich and assertive tone, nice and brassy and influenced by the beefy sounds of Coleman Hawkins and Chu Berry with a hint of left-of center and a dash of early Coltrane. This well recorded gig has Montrose and company gliding through a lusciously swinging “The Shadow of Your Smile” and “Just Friends” which both allow O’Brien and Kotick to stretch out a tad as well. Monterose’s solos are rich with ideas and dynamics, never going too far off into outer space and always keeping a sense of bop. His slower pieces such as “I Should Care” and “Ruby My Dear” display a bel canto sense of aria, with his horn glowing like a charcoal ember. Best of all is a creative read of “Giant Steps” that has the hard bop classic delivered in a completely different and rewarding waltz groove for the first half of the 12 minute piece before he pops the gear into a hard bop overdrive. This is a guy who knew where he came from and what he wanted. He kept his eye on the ball to the very end. The accompanying booklet puts the life and music of Monterose in perspective. This one’s a recently unburied treasure!
Uptown Records