KENNY GARRETT: Seeds from the Underground
Mack Avenue, 2012

MODERN JAZZ – Garrett is an interesting saxophonist: he can burn with great fire and aggression, but he also loves to please the crowd with happy little toe-tappers and feel-good riffing tunes. His songs tend to be simple – at first they may seem too simple or lightweight – but just sit back and enjoy them, and before you know it you’ll be grinning and nodding along, caught in the groove. That’s Garrett. Very tight quintet, mostly upbeat tunes, nice stretchy solo spaces.

All nice. Fo’s Picks: 1, 2, 4, 6, 7, 10

1. 9:03 – cute, perky melody with latin percussion, solos are full of joy
2. 6:25 – postbop energy & sharp angles; takes simple theme and runs with it
3. 7:35 – steady pulse, a soulful urban strut weaves through piano riff
4. 7:27 – stirring freedom march, wordless vocal shadows sax, gets deep
5. 4:21 – simple sax/piano ballad with scratchy vinyl pop/hiss, wordless vocals
6. 8:08 – heavy, rolling theme: strong drums, questioning soprano sax solo
7. 8:14 – swing turns serious: sax in tight little knots over chugging groove
8. 8:43 – vocal chorus, repetitive tune, spirited solos, African jam ending
9. 6:17 – dusky soprano sax ballad, moves at a serene pace
10. 3:38 – solid latin-postbop groove; sax roots around a bit, could be longer

[ Fo ] - April 2012