HOLLYWOOD

Father Figure
Michael Dease (Posi-Tone)
by Ken Dryden
Michael Dease has always challenged himself. In high
school he was All-State on saxophone, but switched to
trombone his senior year and repeated the feat. Since
his arrival in New York, Dease has developed into one
of his generation’s top trombonists.
Father Figure features a tight quintet with
vibraphonist Behn Gillece, pianist Glenn Zaleski,
bassist Endea Owens and drummer Luther Allison,
occasionally augmented by alto saxophonists Markus
Howell and Immanuel Wilkins. Strutting blues
“Church of the Good Hustler” shows that Dease can
back the acclaim he has received for his expressive,
swinging trombone. Howell and Wilkins engage in a
playful trading of fours while Gillece recalls Milt
Jackson. The leader’s “Brooklyn” is a gorgeous work
named for his newborn daughter, with a multi-faceted
theme evolving as quickly as its namesake.
Charlie Parker’s “Confirmation” was an in-studio
suggestion by producer Marc Free and the impromptu
performance demonstrates how quickly talented
musicians can incorporate fresh ideas into standards.
Both alto saxophonists shine in their respective
choruses, Dease turning things up a notch soloing over
walking bass. Claudio Roditi’s engaging samba
“Annette’s For Sure” crackles with tight, inventive
solos by both Dease and Howell, Zaleski getting the
final say. Dease gives “Marian the Librarian” (from The
Music Man) a loping, cowboy undercurrent and salutes
the late pianist Mulgrew Miller with a fiery setting of
his “Wingspan”. Dease penned the title track for
Owens, one of his students at Michigan State, who
keeps a solid groove in this wild reworking of
“All God’s Chillun Got Rhythm” and adds a tasty solo
as well. Father Figure is a valuable addition to Michael
Dease’s already impressive discography.
For more information, visit posi-tone.com. Dease is at 92nd
Street Y’s Jazz in July Jul. 28th. See Calendar.
Live At Maxwell’s
DE3 (Sunnyside)
by Philip Freeman
Trumpeter Duane Eubanks made his Sunnyside debut
in 2015 with Things Of That Particular Nature, a suave,
melodic and classicist hardbop date. That album
featured Abraham Burton and Marc Cary alongside the
musicians who make up DE3: Eubanks, bassist Dezron
Douglas and drummer Eric McPherson. This
one, a looser and more stripped-down effort, was
recorded at the Manhattan drum shop rather than in a
traditional studio and gives the listener the feeling of
eavesdropping on a conversation.
Eubanks’ tone is soft, but full—his notes seem to
roll out of the bell, patiently and thoughtfully taking
the air. Behind him, Douglas and McPherson set up
loping, relaxed grooves. All the compositions are
written by the trio’s members, though “Little Johnny C
Blues” nods to the title track of Johnny Coles’ sole Blue
Note album. (Coles was Eubanks’ teacher, though their
approaches to the horn are starkly different.) It’s not
all mellow shuffles and soft soloing, though; about
three-quarters of the way through “A Slight Taste”,
Eubanks reaches for the sky, squeezing out a sudden,
forceful run at the top of the horn’s range that surprises
without feeling unwelcome or gratuitous.
This group is a trio, not a trumpeter and his
rhythm team. On “Little Johnny C Blues”, Douglas and
McPherson take a full minute to themselves before the
horn is heard and it’s a terrific, organic sound, the
drummer’s energy restrained but ever-present as the
bass boings and booms in a manner recalling Charlie
Haden behind Ornette Coleman in 1959. “Strokish”,
meanwhile, is a seven-minute track, which begins with
a three-minute drum solo building from delicate
skittering runs to avalanche-like rolls; when the others
start playing, McPherson settles into a Tony Williamsish
zone of precise hi-hat and occasional snare eruption,
like he hasn’t quite gotten all of that opening solo out
of his system. These three players have a lot to say,
individually and collectively, and whether they bring
the other two members of the quintet back for the next
album or not, it’ll be worth hearing.
For more information, visit sunnysiderecords.com. Duane
Eubanks is at Smalls Jul. 22nd-23rd. See Calendar.
KERRYTOWN CONCERT HOUSE
edgefest20
2016
20 YEARS AT THE EDGE!
October 26th through 29th, 2016
Jason Kao Hwang’s Burning Bridge Ensemble • William Parker Quartet
Northwoods Improvisers Trio • Trio 3 • John Hollenbeck’s Claudia Quintet
Kris Davis Trio • Noh Prezens • Ingrid Laubrock’s Serpentines
Sylvaine Hélary’s Spring Roll • TranceFormation • Stephen Rush
Tad Weed’s Freedom Ensemble featuring Vinny Golia • Blue Dog
Conference Call Quartet • Wadada Leo Smith & John Lindberg
John Hollenbeck - Works for Large Ensemble • Craig Taborn
The University of Michigan Jazz Ensemble • and more!
Edgefest is honored to receive a matching grant on
ticket sales from the Robert D. Bielecki Foundation,
including a double match for every new attendee!
The Maxine & Stuart Frankel
Foundation for Art
For more info or to reserve festival passes, contact us:
reservations@kerrytown.com • kerrytownconcerthouse.com/edgefest
(734) 769-2999 • 415 N. Fourth Ave., Ann Arbor, MI 48104
THE NEW YORK CITY JAZZ RECORD | JULY 2016 33