In 1962,
Poncho Sanchez
purchased the album
Coltrane
on
Impulse
. He was 14. It was the first album he'd bought with his own money. He'd been under the saxophonist's spell for years, listening to him on the radio in Los Angeles.
Trane's Delight
, the first album by
Sanchez
in seven years, is a thank you, a tribute to one of his musical pillars. Issued by
Concord
, the conguero's home since 1982, the date is a heartfelt homage to the saxophonist's influence as well as a seamless extension of
's signature brand of Latin jazz.
The 11-track set features
's longtime band: trombonist and musical director
Francisco Torres
, trumpet and fluegelhorn master
Ron Blake
, saxophonist
Robert Hardt
, pianist
Andy Langham
, bassists
Rene Camacho
and
Ross Schodek
, and percussionists
Joey DeLeon
Giancarlo Anderson
. There are three
tunes here -- "Liberia," "Blue Train," and "Giant Steps" -- as well as a Latinized read of
Duke Ellington
's "The Feeling of Jazz," from 1963's
Duke Ellington and John Coltrane
.
takes insightful and wide liberties with the material. In his liner notes, jazz historian and author
Ashley Khan
argues that this is just as it should be given the saxophonist's boundary-extending example. "Giant Steps" is offered as a spirited mambo with dueling percussion and a complex horn chart structured in staggered rhythms. "Liberia" is delivered as hard-swinging, spiritual, Afro-Cuban hard bop, with fiery montunos from
Langham
and a burning trombone solo by
Torres
. "Blue Train" is a deep-hued cha-cha. The latter comes across as a bluesy swagger that gives way to
Hardt
's sweet-toned alto in a sprightly bebop vernacular, and the up-mixed percussion section percolates right alongside it. But
offers his own Latin jazz nod to
'Trane
with the band's reading of
Hubert Laws
' "Soul Bourgeoise" -- immortalized by the conguero's early idols
the Jazz Crusaders
on 1965's landmark
Chile con Soul
. It' a funky cha cha with a roiling tenor solo from
. "Si Te Dicen" is a rich, silky bolero that juxtaposes the
Joe Cuba Sextet
version with
's warm ballad style.
's "Sube" melds mambo, salsa, modal jazz, and post-bop in a glorious stew, with
and the percussionists nodding at the influence of
Mongo Santamaria
. The other originals from
include "Yam'mote," a smoking salsa blues with fine soloing from the trombonist and "Poncho Sanchez's Medley #2" -- "Baila Me Gente," "El Sabroso," and "El Shing-A-Ling" -- which offer seamless, impeccably arranged salsa with fine singing by
and a wondrous flute break by
. The title cut readily references the bop frame of
Tadd Dameron
's "Our Delight" inside a hard-hitting mambo. The closer is a modernized read of
Bobby Manrique
's sparkling salsa "Todo Termino" (it appeared on a
Sammy Gonzalez y Los Torbellinos
album from 1978), with gorgeous vocals from
Norell Thomas
is savvy, sophisticated, and funky: a personal tribute that reveals the joy offered by
's inspiration. More, it is a welcome return for
, a jazz giant and creative inspiration in his own right. ~ Thom Jurek