Rob McConnell & the Boss Brass

                                                                    Atras da Porta     

                                           

"Atras da Porta" was the 16th release by The Boss Brass. It was issued on the Canadian Innovation label. The album contained eight tracks in total. In addition to the high level of musicianship displayed by the 22 piece orchestra, this release is a bit unique in that five of the songs are from Latin American composers. The album was produced by Argentinian composer and producer Fernando Gelbard, who contributed his compositions “Flowers”, “Jo Jo’s Dance” and “Didi”. As far as arrangements are concerned, Rob McConnell arranged five of the tracks; “Easy To Love”, “Flowers”, “Autumn In New York”, “Didi” and “Bye Bye Blues”, two were arranged by Jorge Callandrelli; “Jo Jo’s Dance” and the title track “Atras da Porta” and Rick Wilkins arranged “Amor Ate O Fim”. As one would expect, all of the songs feature innovative and sophisticated arrangements, outstanding soloists (including Moe Koffman on alto sax, guitarist Ed Bickert, Guido Basso on flugelhorn and Eugene Amaro on tenor sax) and top flight ensemble playing. The opening track on the album is an outstanding version of Cole Porter’s “Easy To Love”, which is a real barn-burner featuring solos by Moe Koffman and Steve Wallace. In a catalogue of consistent excellence, it is hard to select one recording that stands out above the others. This one is certainly up there though. Highly recommended.   

 Cal Collins

 

Cincinnati To L.A.

 

While browsing through the local record store recently, I came across an album on the Concord label featuring a musician I didn’t immediately recognize. The artist was jazz guitarist Cal Collins, and the title of the record was “Cincinnati To L.A.” The recording was trio session with Monty Budwig on double bass and Jake Hanna on drums. I prefer smaller groups, and a trio setting with bass and drums is one of my favourites. I picked up the album, and put it on after I got home. I wasn’t disappointed. According to the album liner notes, which were written by Leonard Feather, Cal, who was born on May 5, 1933 grew up in what Cal described as a country and bluegrass atmosphere, in a household with mandolins, banjos and guitars. As a child, Cal played the mandolin. A little later on, he was exposed to Django Reinhardt and Charlie Christian, and focused on jazz. After a stint in the Army, he decided to take on the challenge of making his living as a professional musician. He paid his dues, mainly working around Cincinnati, until in 1976, after a recommendation, he auditioned for Benny Goodman and was selected to become the guitarist in Benny’s group. While performing in California with Benny, he was offered an opportunity to record with Concord Records. 

“Cincinnati To L.A.” was Cal’s second record on Concord. The album has ten tracks, all of them jazz standards. The songs provide a variety of settings for the trio to shine, and of course lots of room to hear Cal’s very talented playing. The years of working in lounges I’m sure provided Cal with an impressive repertoire of material to work with, and on this record, we get to hear him in different settings. Of note, he is featured as the solo instrument on “If I Had You”. The group’s performance of “Willow Weep For Me” is also a highlight, emphasizing the bluesy aspect of the song. One of the things I found interesting about Cal was his choice of guitar; a Gretsch 6120 hollow-body, an instrument not normally associated with jazz. 

Unfortunately, very little of Cal Collin’s excellent recordings made the transition to compact disc, although there are some videos on YouTube. The album “Cincinnati To L.A.” was produced by Carl Jefferson of Concord Jazz, and was recorded in California. The catalogue number is CJ-59. I should mention that in his discography, Cal is noted as being a popular sideman, appearing on a variety of other Concord albums. As I like to say, highly recommended.