Like the vintage days of Blue Note Records, fairly new label Le Coq Records has gathered together a coterie musicians that mix and match on each other’s projects. The depth of their bench was in evidence Tuesday night at Catalina’s, because what was supposed to be a showcase for famed bassist teaming with vocalist Andy James and joined by percussionist Alex Acuna and trumpeter Terrell Stafford, had a slew of late minute changes and cancellations due to COVID and conflicting gigs.
So what does the bassist for the likes of Wayne Shorter and the late Chick Corea do? What he does best, which is to IMPROVISE! And he did it adroitly putting together two bands in one night for a swinging night of festive sounds.
First up was the first class team of Bill Cunliffe/p, Clarence Penn/dr, Steve Cardenas/g, Eric Wheeler and Bob Shepherd/sax-fl for some classy standards. Shepherd’s alto glowed over the clean Latin pulse of “I Love You” with glimmering solos from the pianist and guitarist. “The Nearness of You” was a relaxed gem of Shepherd’s flute floating over the fluffy ivories. A post bopping take of “Temptation” had the sax-less quartet digging in to Cardenas’ tensile tone. And just to top things off, Jane Monheit popped up on stage from the audience along with tenor saxist Joel Frahm to give sweet coos to “Honeysuckle Rose”.
Making as many lineup changes as Dave Roberts, Patitucci kept Wheeler on the mound , but bringing in pianist Jon Cowherd, Frahm and reliever Nicholas Payton on trumpet for a gloriously moody and blue take of the Payton’s’ “Backwards Step” that felt like Maiden Voyage-era Blue Note, particularly with Cowherd’s rich and creative soloing and Payton’s relentlessly expressive horn work.
Wheeler hands off the bass to Patitucci finally coming on stage, and the team delivers material from Cowherd’s latest release Pride and Joy, bass and drums digging in deep around Cowherd’s searching arias, while Frahm fills the room with his glorious tone. Switching to six string electric bass and both horns taking a breather, Patitucci conversed elegantly with Cardenas, gliding up and down the neck on the irresistibly pulsed “Little Scorpio”. Back to the upright, and Patitucci danced around the upright between Cowherd’s solo intro and mid song unaccompanied spotlight on the cleverly arranged “The Colorado Experiment”. The mood was tender for Cowherd’s dedication to Ellis Marsalis on the poignant and elegiac “Honest Man” with the horns joining in for a relaxed bopper with a sleekly clever line on the quirky “Chipmonk” with each soloist giving a Monk quote for a fun closer of a night.
Spontaneous, but still landing on one’s feet, the band showed a true jazz spirit. Maybe they’ll all show up together next time for one of these cd release gigs, but I doubt it will sizzle like this night. WHEW!
Upcoming shows at Catalina’s include John Pizzarelli 08/26-28, LIzz Wright 09/02-03, Kyle Eastwood 09/21-22, and Dave Weckl/Tom Kennedy 10/13-15