Trumpeter Wallace Roney continues to create a strong catalogue for himself, with an impressive post-bop album of originals and covers. He knows how to create a hip team, using Gary Bartz/as, Ben Solomon/ts-ss, Patrice Rushen/p, Buster Williams/b and Lenny White for sophisticated pieces like the moody “Air Dancing” which has Solomon’s tenor and Roney’s horn melding like butter over a hot corn on the cob, while the horns sigh over Rushen’s piano on the graceful “Ardeche.”
Bartz gets warmer with age, snapping to attention on the crisp “L’s Bop” while Solomon’s soprano sears on “Around and Through.” As for Roney himself, his muted horn is an autumnal delight on a dainty “Clair De Lune” but he shows he can get a bit frisky as well on “My Ship.” His open horn galvanizes on Tony Williams’ “Elegy” while the all star rhythm team has these grooves in their dna. Timeless!
High Note Records