Tenor saxophonist
Renzi echoes teachings from
Joe Henderson and stylistic similarities to
Joe Lovano. He has a warm-hearted, open, expressive sound, rarely relying on histrionics or clichés and staying in the rich tenor range pocket. This all-trio date has an impressive
Masa Kamaguchi on bass and the colorful
Jimmy Weinstein on drums. They form a union that never wanes on any emotional or musical level. The "lines" are pretty much standard bebop numbers.
Thelonious Monk's "Eronel" has some of the deepest blue bass strokes
Kamaguchi can possibly conjure within this relative easy swing, while
Renzi renders the hip melody. Two
Charlie Parker tunes are present: the wonderfully turned out "Ah-Leu-Cha," with its peppy melody and choppy phrasings played to perfection, and the atypically cool take of "Barbados," with
Weinstein leading off for a long, constructive intro solo. "Dear Max" qualifies as a "line" with
Weinstein completely setting the pace with a waltz-tempoed series of typical
Max Roach melodic phrases. "New Line" is another very hip swinger with
Renzi showing more of an edge and
Kamaguchi breaking down the melody and reconstructing it on his stellar bass solo quite convincingly. The ballads are the lesser-known,
Duke Ellington tear-flowing "My Love," with delicate sauntering from
Renzi. "East of the Sun" is done pretty straight-ahead here, and straddles the fence between "line" and "ballad." It might come as a surprise as to how finely crafted this recording is. What is more refreshing is that it comes so effortlessly. Jazz flows, at times surges, through the veins of these individualists and clearly compatible partners. Highly recommended. ~ Michael G. Nastos