Eddie Henderson brings his working group to the British-based Sirocco label for
Oasis, a rewarding straight-ahead effort. The desert theme is established on the very first track, "Dubai," an enchanting seven/four piece by
Billy Drummond, the session's formidable drummer.
Henderson follows this with two desert-related originals, "Oasis" and "Sandstorm," a ballad and an all-out swinger, respectively; his modal, quasi-epic "Desert Sun" concludes the program. In between are compelling versions of
Wayne Shorter's fairly obscure waltz "Lost,"
Herbie Hancock's oft-sampled (and here, heavily reharmonized) classic "Cantaloupe Island,"
Lee Morgan's 1964 ballad "Melancholee," and
George Cables' mellow yet funky "Why Not." Pianist
Kevin Hays, one of the album's chief assets, contributes the spacious and meditative "Siddhartha," featuring
Henderson's only muted performance. Vibraphonist (and producer)
Joe Locke and bassist
Ed Howard round out the quintet.