Taking a
fresh look at iconic jazz compositions as well as unexpected country and folk
material, Five Plus Six imbues its debut recording, Such Sweet Thunder, with
panache and surprise. Led by Knoxville Jazz Orchestra founder and director
Vance Thompson, the new eleven-piece band fuses Thompson's core quintet with
six additional horns, expanding the sonic potential of the original outfit
while also providing some of Knoxville's deserving young musicians a chance to
perform in an exceptional large ensemble. By taking on classic work by Duke
Ellington, Billy Strayhorn and Thelonious Monk, and then blending such left
field gems as Dolly Parton's "Little Sparrow" and the Appalachian
folk tune, "He's Gone Away" into the mix, Thompson is able to display
his masterful gift for imaginative arranging and deft ability to maneuver a
crack ensemble.
The
heart of Five Plus Six is a practiced quintet that has been working steadily
for more than a year under the name The Marble City Five featuring Thompson on
trumpet with tenor saxophonist Greg Tardy, pianist Keith Brown (youngest son of
pianist Donald Brown), bassist Taylor Coker and drummer Nolan Nevels. As
Thompson began thinking about recording the quintet, the idea of expanding the
scope of the band's sound suddenly merged with the notion of including some of
the city's outstanding younger musicians. The additional horn players perform
with a healthy dose of youthful vigor adding excitement as well as sparkling
tonal color.
Given
that the album's title references Duke Ellington and Billy Strayhorn's honored
1957 suite, Five Plus Six's Such Sweet Thunder trains a deserved spotlight on
Ellington and Strayhorn jewels. In the band's hands "Such Sweet
Thunder" moves to both an Afro-Cuban and traditional swing beat, while
"Prelude to a Kiss" (arranged by pianist Brown) sets the tune's
original melody against modern harmonies and a straight-eighth groove. Brown
also replaces his piano with Fender Rhodes to add extra spice. Thompson's
arrangement of Ellington's "Rockin' in Rhythm" has become one of the
quintet's signature numbers. His treatment follows the basic structure of the
original, with harmonic substitutions and a new time signature added for
variety. The arrangement of Strayhorn's "Isfahan" allows the band to
demonstrate its fondness for the blues and features a Thad Jones-esque section
for trombone, tenor and bass along with gripping solos by Tardy, Thompson and
Brown. Thelonious Monk is honored by way of original arrangements of "Pannonica," which bursts with
double time momentum, and "Ugly Beauty" with its hint of Afro-Cuban
flavor accented by muted effects in the brass and a compelling soli section for
flugelhorn and baritone saxophone. Keith Brown also contributed an unusual
orchestration of Monk's "Four in One" based on an arrangement by his
father, the former Jazz Messenger and famed composer/pianist Donald Brown.
Keith's chart places Monk's melody over a funky bass and drum groove for
delightful effect.
More
memorable surprises come with the arresting arrangements of "Little
Sparrow," a tune by East Tennessee native Dolly Parton, and the
Appalachian folk standard, "He's Gone Away." Thompson first heard
"Little Sparrow" on a recording by Bettye LaVette, on which the
singer altered the original feel of Parton's performance yet conjured up her
own stunningly personal interpretation. "When I looked up Dolly's original
version of the song, I found that it had been recorded in Knoxville at a studio
that I'd done some work in," Thompson recalls. "I fell in love with
the simplicity of her original version of the song, but Bettye LaVette's
completely different take on the tune made me realize that it could be taken in
a lot of different directions without losing its power. I was inspired to try
my hand at my own version of the song, and it has since become one of my
favorite things to play. Audiences seem to like it too, whether they know it's
a Dolly Parton original or not." Another tune from outside of the jazz
repertoire, "He's Gone Away" is a traditional Appalachian folk song
that came to Thompson's attention through a beautiful recording by bassist
Charlie Haden on his roots music project, Ramblin' Boy. While Thompson's
arrangement does expand upon the tune's simple harmonic structure at times, the
song's poignant message of love and loss is left undisturbed.
Since
founding the Knoxville Jazz Orchestra in August of 1999, Thompson has had
plenty of opportunity to hone his big band arranging chops. The KJO (which Jack
Bowers of All About Jazz called "a local ensemble with world-class
talent") performs frequent concerts, features world -renowned guest
artists and has released several acclaimed recordings of which the All Music
Guide's Scott Yanow has written,
"Listeners who favor modern big bands will find much to savor during these
flawless performances."
www.fiveplussix.com
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