Old School trumpeter Paul Litteral plays to serve the music and not show off his own prowess on this delightful album of old, new, borrowed and blue. He’s with a mix an match team of Bill Bodine/b, Michael Rosen/dr, Rocky Davis/keys, Sam Morgan/bs, Colin Kupka/as, Craig Kupka and a handful of vocalists, such as a Dr. Johnnish Lenny Goldsmith on a fun and festive “Accentuate The Positive”. The production by Bodine and Angela Mae O’Neill is first rate, as O’Neill coos through “There Will Never Be Another You” and Anna Orbison swaggers around “Makin’ Whoopee”. Beth Anderson brings out a beaut of an obscurity in Tom Waits’ “Shiver Me Timbers”, but the real joy is what Litteral chooses NOT to have a vocalist interpret.
For instance the Eagles’ “Desperado” features a hiply muted leader with strings, while a read of Steely Dan’s hit “Do It Again” brings out hip keyboards from Rocky Davis and splashy trumpet from Litteral. Billy Cobham’s “The Moon Ain’t Made of Green Cheese” closes things out in full fashion with a hip jab and punch. This guy’s a hoot!