SFJAZZ COLLECTIVE: Live 2006
SFJAZZ, 2006

MODERN JAZZ - Every year SFJAZZ, the org that runs the San Francisco Jazz Festival, assembles this supergroup of top mainstream jazz players to honor the work of one major composer. Each member of the band also contributes one original piece. This set captures their 2006 repertoire, which included six Herbie Hancock tunes. There’s a certain swagger and a lot of dynamic movement here, rising from calm spaces to big crescendos and then falling back. Solid stuff all around.

No duds here. Fo’s Picks: Disc 1 – 1, 3, 4, 7 Disc 2 – 3, 4, 5, 6

DISC ONE:

1. 14:15 – pulsing, big-city feel: hip piano, confident sax, streetwise ending
2. 07:49 – easygoing soul-jazz slide, big-band feel; nice trombone & vibes
3. 09:03 – nifty rhythm: tiptoes carefully, then stomps; everyone gets solo time
4. 10:14 – dragging tempo: trumpet lament builds & falls, extended bass solo
5. 06:47 – snappy modern tune: busy trombone solo over bustling rhythm
6. 06:47 – speedy riffs, retro horns & flute, popping sax solo, churning drums
7. 14:26 – thoughtful over calm chords, builds to 2 crescendos, good sax work

DISC TWO:

1. 11:17 – “daybreak” feel: rises to complex riffing tune; solid piano, funky sax
2. 09:35 – classic tune: floating big-band feel, good ensemble, tender vibes
3. 11:23 – modernist waltz with a stern edge, fine piano & sax, huge ending
4. 10:26 – quick-paced, hits hard: bright trumpet, chatty trombone, low bass
5. 08:56 – measured tempo, pretty sound, very nice vibes, popping sax
6. 06:31 – 70s cinematic r&b sound, very true to Herbie, hard not to like this
7. 16:45 – anthemic, with striding confidence, tempo shifts: cutting trumpet, easygoing sax and a long, titanic drum solo

[ Fo ] 4-Aug-07