Bassist
Martin Wind's third Challenge CD is a quartet date with pianist
Bill Cunliffe,
Scott Robinson (a musician who likely can play and probably owns every known instrument in the reed and brass families, including many obscure items), and drummer Greg Hutchinson. Seven of the ten songs are
Wind's compositions. The bittersweet "The Dream" conveys a sense of longing, with terrific solos all around and soft brush work by Hutchinson.
Robinson's vocal-like bass clarinet and
Wind's arco bass engage in a playful dissonant exchange before "Remember October 13th" (in honor of the late bassist
Ray Brown's birthday) begins to take shape, becoming a quirky, walking trio blues with Hutchinson rounding out the trio. One can almost envision the second line moving along the parade route to follow a Crescent City band in "Early Morning Blues," with
Cunliffe's down-home piano and
Robinson overdubbing tenor sax and echo cornet (the latter alternately with and without a mute).
Wind also explores three gems by jazz masters. He doesn't stray far from the roots of
Bill Evans' lovely "Turn Out the Stars," playing it in an easygoing setting with
Robinson's expressive tenor out front.
Wind reshapes
Thelonious Monk's "Bright Mississippi" into a lively calypso, while his solemn, reverent interpretation of
Duke Ellington's "Come Sunday" also showcases
Robinson on tenor sax. ~ Ken Dryden