Freewheelin' with Claudio Roditi

The recent death of trumpeter Claudio Roditi prompted me to pull out Freewheelin,’ his Lee Morgan tribute album. I remembered it as being an excellent hard bop outing and relistening has confirmed that recollection. I do have a couple of additional thoughts, though.

Lee Morgan was a fine composer. Aside from The Sidewinder, his biggest hit (and check out Bob Cranshaw’s amusing account of how that recording session went down), tunes like The Joker and Our Man Higgins are deserving of more attention than they usually get. I especially liked the somewhat plaintive Peyote.

Andres Boiarsky. Years, ago, when he was a part of Slide Hampton’s Dizzy Gillespie big band, I heard him at James Moody’s 80^th birthday celebration at the Kennedy Center. I had never heard of him, but he played an outrageously good solo that left him and the sax section beaming. Like Roditi, Boiarsky is Argentinian, and he’s still active on the jazz scene there. His playing is great throughout this album.

Nick Brignola. He’s on only a few tracks on baritone and soprano, but he’s always a pleasure to hear. He goes after every tune with gusto.

Claudio Roditi. In his obituary, I learned that he played a rotary valve trumpet, which looks like it’s being held sideways, rather than the more common piston trumpet, as you can see on the album cover. Supposedly the rotary trumpet produces a mellower tone, but it would take better ears than mine to detect it based on this album, which finds Roditi in a definite Morgan groove. What a fine trumpeter he was! He'll be much missed.

The rhythm section. Mark Soskin on piano, the ubiquitous Buster Williams on bass (and I really want to see the new documentary about him), and Chip White on drums all contribute mightily and get some solo room, too.

Here's the inevitable The Sidewinder:

 The Joker: 

And Peyote:

Everybody's Favorite Unknown Pianist: Jack Wilson's Easterly Winds

Someone once jokingly referred to Jack Wilson as “everyone’s favorite unknown jazz pianist.” It’s true, though, that for someone who recorded several albums for Blue Note and a number of other labels, Wilson doesn’t get much love from the wider jazz audience (if there is such a thing these days). I’ve sometimes wondered, only somewhat facetiously, if it’s because “Jack Wilson” is such a bland name. If his contemporaries had nicknamed him “Sonny” or “Fats,” maybe it would have raised his profile.

His profile is well worth raising, though. Take Easterly Winds, his second album for Blue Note, recorded in 1967. With a front line of Jackie McLean, Lee Morgan, and the lamentably little-known Garnett Brown on Trombone, and a rhythm section of Bob Cranshaw and Billy Higgins, it has a lot going for it even before you hear the music.

Most of the compositions are Wilson’s, except for Frank Strozier’s Frank’s Tune and Johnny Mandel’s ballad A Time for Love, the latter of which features Wilson in a trio setting and highlights both his excellent technique and feeling. I really like Wilson the composer. Musicians looking for something fresh ought to investigate the title tune and Nirvanna, both of which have that spiritual jazz uplift feeling that means so much to me. Do It, the obligatory “let’s try for another Sidewinder” effort gets nice and funky, with a solid bop gutbucket solo by Brown. I’m a sucker for Jackie Mac’s astringent, passionate alto, and Lee Morgan’s contributions are, as always, a reminder of how much we lost when he died so young. On Children, with a crisp Billy Higgins opening, is another fine track.

Maybe Jack Wilson isn’t so neglected after all. In a couple of weeks, a previously unreleased set, Call Me -Jazz from the Penthouse, featuring Wilson and vibraphonist Roy Ayers, is coming out on CD, and based on their work together on other recordings, a great combination.

Here are Nirvanna and Easterly Winds for your delectation.