Latest CD releases reviewed.
STAN SULZMANN
The Jigsaw Basho
*****
Tenor-soprano saxophonist Sulzmann may be one of Britain's best kept secrets, but the fact remains he's a truly outstanding player. And on this memorable album, made in New York last January, he's among peers; pianist Marc Copland, bassist Larry Grenadier and drummer Bill Stewart are as good as it gets. Moreover, Sulzmann's compositions - five of the eight pieces here are his; the remaining three are by Copland, Stewart and Kenny Wheeler - have a very savoury, distinctive character. Likewise, his lines are simultaneously logical and full of surprise. Most of all, the quartet goes about things with compelling relish and imagination. Sulzmann is in Whelan's next Sunday with Copland and the pianist's "working" trio of Drew Gress and Jochen Rückert. Not to be missed.
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KEITH JARRETT
The Out-Of-Towners ECM
*****
With musicians of the calibre of Jarrett, bassist Gary Peacock and drummer Jack DeJohnette, superior quality is a given; if they have had an off-night ever - and that's doubtful - the evidence has yet to appear. So this is Jarrett's "Standards" trio again, recorded live three years ago in sumptuous sound at Munich's State Opera and in typically brilliant form. They still find fresh excitements in material such as the sweepingly romantic You've Changed, produce a stunning, straight-ahead Five Brothers, and handle even older forms strikingly; the title track has blues blood running through its veins, but it's spilled with considerable freedom, remarkable interplay and impeccable dynamics. And Jarrett caps things with a solo encore, playing It's All in the Game with eloquent simplicity.
PHIL BANCROFT
Headlong Caber
***
Bancroft is an attractive tenor; nice, rounded tone, personal ideas and the wherewithal to execute them. But he's also a gentle, curiously unassertive saxophonist and it shows here, where he's surrounded by really strong players, particularly bassist Reid Anderson from pianist Ethan Iverson's Bad Plus trio, and drummer Thomas Strønen from the boundary-stretching Swedish group Ståhl's Blå. Closest to Bancroft's generally restrained, understated approach is guitarist Mike Walker, but they're both somewhat dominated by Strønen and Anderson. The pieces, all written by Bancroft, are spare but not strong on character, and ultimately the ear is drawn more to the bass and Strønen's ceasless invention, rather than the leader. The album has its merits, but headlong it ain't.
