Culled from separate live concert performances at
New Langton Arts
in San Francisco, CA and
the Berkeley Store Gallery
in Berkeley,
Buddy Collette
(alto sax/flute) and bandleader
Joe Rosenberg
(soprano sax) join tenor saxophonist
Rob Sudduth
to create a formidable front line in the ensemble dubbed
Affinity
. Bassist
Michael Silverman
and drummer
Bobby Lurie
support the sax trio rhythmically as they weave their
Dolphy
-esque patterns in and out of tonal melody and the pungent harmonic references
invented as his signature sound. All six selections are associated either directly to
's repertoire/book or with musicians who employed him. The band starts with the
Booker Little
-penned bop improv
"Bee Vamp,"
with its stinging staccato melody and the saxes of
Collette
and
Rosenberg
evoking the singular sourdough audio images of
as they duel away after their solos, drums, and bass. The lilting, progressive
"Booker's Waltz"
has one of the members, unidentified but presumably
Sudduth
, playing bass clarinet alongside alto and soprano, with another fine drum solo. Ruminant flute from
, who taught
many tricks of the trade, crops up over the base saxes on
Jaki Byard
's
"Ode to Charlie Parker,"
while that same format informs the classic melody of
Mal Waldron
's eminent swinger
"Fire Waltz."
The zinger of the set is a dour, easy-paced ballad associated with
Max Roach
, titled
"Mendacity."
On this track, the saxes take turns soloing while the others back them with support lines that shirk no harmonic overtones a la
, and
Silverman
takes a hefty bass solo. The finale of this 55-minute set is the
Charles Mingus
paen
"So Long, Eric,"
a relatively fun and funny tune with more interactive collective participation before churning solos, another literate solo from
, and all saxes trading fours in this tour de force finale. If you crave a new look at the music of
this recording does it faithfully. You should also seek the two
Pro Jazz
/
Evidence
Live at Sweet Basil
recordings from the
Terence Blanchard
Donald Harrison
Richard Davis
Ed Blackwell
quintet, and
Jerome Harris
'
New World
CD
Hidden in Plain View
. They collectively give rise to the notion that
Eric Dolphy
's music is not lost in the air, but very much alive and well. Recommended. ~ Michael G. Nastos