New Jawn

Reviewed: 2018-10-25
Genre: Jazz
FCCs: none
Review: “The word “jawn”— a fresh new phenomenon—is familiar argot to Christian McBride, a Philadelphia native. And when it comes to trailblazing new, cool jazz, the venerable bassist always delivers. Enter his latest jawn—a pianoless quartet, born of a New York scene that sates East Coast soul-seekers and purists alike. Christian McBride’s New Jawn faithfully salutes its forebears, but leave it to this next-gen assimilation of bandleaders to take musical liberties. No doubt, the Philly flavor is present—tight instrumentation, fast-and-loose percussive subtlety and soul for days.” - Downbeat
If You Like: Charles Mingus, Roscoe Mitchell, Gerry Mulligan, Ornette Coleman
Track Review (favorites denoted by *):
*1/ Walkin’ Funny (2:48) – bass starts> off-kilter midtempo jam with shifting melodies> quick stop
*2/ Ke-Kelli Sketch (9:54) – drums start> bass/drum duet> uptempo jam> trumpet solo> jam slows to midtempo> sax solo> drum solo> bowed bass solo to fade
3/ Ballad Of Ernie Washington (5:34) – trumpet starts> slow jam> trumpet solo> sax solo> slow jam> slow fade
*4/ The Middle Man (4:59) – full band starts> uptempo jam> sax solo swings to fast tempo> trumpet solo> fast jam slows to crescendo end
5/ Pier One Import (7:44) – trumpet starts> uptempo jam slows to midtempo> melody shift with drums up front> trumpet solo> sax solo> bass solo> uptempo jam> crescendo> bass solo> midtempo jam> fade
6/ Kush (5:35) – trumpet starts> slow jam> sax solo> trumpet solo> bass solo> slow jam> slow fade
*7/ Seek The Source (7:21) – bass starts> uptempo jam> sax solo> jam> bass solo> jam> crescendo end
*8/ John Day (5;19) – sax starts> slow slinky jam> trumpet solo> sax solo> bass solo> slow jam> slow fade
9/ Sightseeing (8:30) – drums start> fast jam slows to midtempo, then builds to fast tempo again> trumpet soo> bass solo> fast jam> fade