Terrible in Bloomington, MN

The pianist for
NRBQ
has long had
jazz
chops, as well as ideas to express, apart from his working band. On this CD, there are a variety of different instrumental ideas on tracks featuring fellow
-ers the
Spampinato
brothers --
Johnny
on guitar and
Joey
on electric bass guitar -- and drummer
Tom Ardolino
.
Bobby Previte
plays the drum kit on four of the selections and
Roswell Rudd
is on trombone for two, while
Sun Ra
hornmen
Marshall Allen
(alto sax),
Tyrone Hill
(trombone), and
Dave Gordon
(trumpet) perform on six tracks. Because the personnel of each cut is different (all written by
Adams
), it allows him to explore the various facets of his lengthy music career. He expresses broad-based ideas, all competently played, from deep introspection to swing to modern mainstream themes, and his happy, uplifting sound, while not dominant, is nonetheless ever-present. Of the pieces with his
-mates,
"Le Sony'r"
is a processional tango with tinkling piano, fanfare horns, and
Allen
's tart alto. The swing stomper
"Out the Windo,"
for the late
Gary Windo
, again features
's ribald-flavored musings.
goes midnight blue on
"I Feel Lucky"
with dual brass from
Hill
and
following a guitar-piano unison theme, and the minimalist funk of
"These Blues"
compares that feeling to several things: a "fly buzzin," an "onion that makes you cry but you eat it anyway," an uncooperative elevator, and a "radio, loud, and always on/you can call the request line, but they ain't gonna play your song." Throughout the songs,
Jim Gordon
's harmonica agrees with those sentiments.
includes some beautiful ballads, updating the old
number
"Yes, Yes, Yes,"
and putting
on the lead trombone line for
"Thinking of You."
But the leader is best when he writes a witty, active, hip horn chart in a post-bop mode as on
"Say When"
or camping up a circus-like
"Toodlehead,"
which includes Japanese organ grafted on a goofy
Raymond Scott
type head,
Rudd
's brash solo, and
Jim Hoke
's
Bechet
-like soprano sax.
plays harmonica with three flutes, two muted trombones and two basses for the program's highlight, the oriental-sounding
"Little One,"
and features
prominently on the calypso rhythmed
"Hilda,"
a high point for
's world-class solo dexterity. There's also some straight swinging as on "dog,"
Hoke
again digging in with
comping through the changes, as well as a mbira-clavier duo from
on
"Distant Instant."
Twelve short tunes comprise this excellent CD, and there's not a speck of filler. Obviously,
was overdue (and a follow-up is a must), but this extraordinarily musical disc will be hard to top. Highly recommended. ~ Michael G. Nastos