Seed is the brainchild of pianist
Orrin Evans and his wife Dawn, a singer who performs under her first name. The group is a departure from
Evans's regular output on the Criss Cross label, but
Seed's music -- almost all of it composed by
Evans -- bristles with the same sort of free-spirited improvisational fire. On this debut release,
Evans, Dawn, bassist
Mike Boone, and drummer
Rodney Green, all listed as the group's core members, are joined by an illustrious crew of special guests. Three of the numbers, "T.C.'s Blues," "Commitment," and "Libra," feature
Evans in a trio setting. Tenorist
Ralph Bowen -- one of jazz's best kept secrets -- and altoist
Gary Bartz join on the colorful, swaying "Prayer for Columbine" and the abstract, high-energy blues "When It Comes." The latter also features strong playing by trumpeter
Duane Eubanks.
Branford Marsalis, on soprano saxophone, comes on board for "Boffadem," a gliding Afro-Latin theme based on a riff that alternates between 5/4 and 6/4. The meaning of the title becomes clear upon listening to the final track, "Boffadem (Dialogue)."
Dawn is featured on an ethereal ballad version of
Todd Rundgren's "Hello, It's Me." There's a line in the song that ends, "And spend the night if you think I should," which Dawn changes to, "And spend the night with you if you want me to." This slight alteration loses the poetic urgency of the original, although the strength and beauty of Dawn's voice are undeniable.
With its connotations of organic unity and germinal beginnings,
Seed is an apt name for this band, and a viable framework for some of the most representative music of
Orrin Evans's career to date. As a musical partnership between
Evans and Dawn, moreover, it bodes well for the future. ~ David R. Adler