Tenors of various tones are represented on these three recent albums from Cellar Records.
Kelly Jefferson plays tenor and a bit of soprano sax with her team of Amanda Tosoff/p, Jon Maharaj/b and Morgan Childs/dr on this collection of original. His tenor is warm on easy boppers like “Kindling” and dark over the bluesy cascade of “No Time For The Presient”. He shows his chops on the rapid groover of a modal “Murley’s Mirror” and is meditative on a lyrical “A Prairie Peace”. His soprano is playful on a gentle “Rituals” and dreamy for “If There Even Is Such A Thing”. There’s a cool workout on “Dimmer Switch” that has Tosoff sitting out while the rest of the team sizzle in nimble dancing. Good workout.
Drummer Joel Haynes brings in the big toned tenor Seamus Blake along with Tilden Webb/p and Neil Swainson/b for a mix of originals and covers. Haynes shows his wares in giving Blake some sharp angles on “The Return” while his crisp sticks ride the whip around Swainson’s bass for the bopping “Allure”. Haynes and Swainson go at it on a nifty “There and Back” , with Webb joining in on a lyrical “The Secret Garden”. Blake goes bel canto to Haynes’ mallets on a moody “Angel” and the team charges like stallions for ”Payback”. Muscular music.
Pianist Sharon Minemoto brings in tenor saxist Jon Bently with the rhythm team of Darren Radtke/b and Bernie Arai/dr on this collection of original tunes. Minemoto is playful around the c li p clop support and Bently’s rich fog on “As Luck Would Habit” and dreamily converses with Radtke and Bently’s smoke rings for “Alexandra (for Natasha)”. Radtke’s solo works around the easy conversation of “Good Hearts” and the team gets into a funky mood for “Supermoon”. Most intriguing is an impressionistic solo etude “For Bob Murphy” and some Oriental harmonies on the bodhi tree of “Bike Path”, with Bently most lyrical on “Letters From The Midwest”. Charming tones.