It is easy to be fooled initially by pianist
Eric Reed's latest recording. He starts off the set with an effective tribute to
Art Blakey and sometimes takes solos that are influenced by
McCoy Tyner's chord voicings, but the music on a whole is actually fresh and fairly original, rather than just a copy of the Blue Note years. Except for the final two numbers (pieces by
James Leary and
Wessell Anderson), all of the music was composed by
Reed, and these range from somber ballads and solid swing to the upbeat church feel of "Baby Sis" (which has a heated wah-wah solo from guest trombonist
Wycliffe Gordon). Half of the selections are trio numbers for
Reed with bassist
Ben Wolfe and drummer
Gregory Hutchinson, while the remainder of the set has a two-horn quintet (except for altoist
Wessell Anderson's ballad feature on "Upper Wess Side").
Anderson and trumpeter
Nicholas Payton (who sounds more like
Freddie Hubbard every day) make for a potent team, particularly when they solo together on "Pete and Repete." Although the three "Scandal" pieces, which are brief fragments of the same number, are a bit frivolous and certainly inconclusive, the remainder of the program serves as a strong example of modern mainstream jazz.
Eric Reed continues to grow as an improviser and composer with each recording. ~ Scott Yanow