Two decades after drug addiction effectively derailed bop drummer
Roy Porter's once-promising career, legendary L.A. producer
Bumps Blackwell suggested he announce his return to active duty with a private-press session spotlighting his current musical direction. Had the resulting
Jessica received anything resembling a wide release, it may well have been hailed as a classic. A deeply idiosyncratic yet potently soulful jazz-funk mindfuck that draws liberally and equally from Motown, boogaloo and the avant-garde, it effectively translates the experimental big-band sensibilities of
Porter's famed 1949 orchestra into the post-
Coltrane lexicon, even resurrecting alumni including saxophonist
Jack Fulks, pianist
Tollie Moore and trumpeter
Hense Powell to further underscore the connection between past and present. The essence of
Porter's approach lies in his juxtaposition of driving, dynamic rhythms and sleepytime horn arrangements, creating a strange yet intoxicating sound that forges monster grooves despite its adherence to odd phrasings and left-field tempo changes. Long traded for obscene sums on the secondary market,
Jessica was finally reissued on CD in late 2006.