Terra Firma features six talented modern mainstream players who are based in Denver. Each of these musicians deserves to be better-known but living in Denver does not help their name recognition. Trumpeter Al Hood is excellent on his ballad feature "Blackberry Winter," pianist Jeff Jenkins takes consistently rewarding solos (recalling
McCoy Tyner on "Amsterdam After Dark") and Pete Sommer's muscular tenor solos add fire to the music. The repertoire performed by bassist Ken Walker's sextet includes songs by George Coleman,
Eddie Harris and
Mel Martin along with five Ken Walker originals, many of which give the set a mid-'60s hard bop feel. The music avoids being predictable due to some inventive arrangements including a multi-tempo "Just One of Those Things" and the variety of grooves and tempos keeps the proceedings consistently stimulating. Fans of modern straight-ahead jazz will enjoy this effort by these lesser-known but world-class musicians. ~ Scott Yanow