Lightyear
2007
Time Out
About This Album
A previously unreleased live recording from various unattributed dates in 1977 and 1978, Buddy Rich leads his 15-piece big bands through exuberant music that for the most part avoids the contemporary R&B flavored jazz he was veering towards. Under the auspices of recording engineer, bandmember, and saxophonist Alan Gauvin, these 11 tracks represent a diplomatic Rich, handing off all of the solo chores (he does not play a single solo during the entire CD) and fortifying the group with rising stars at the time such as trumpeters Dave Stahl and Jon Marshall, trombonists John Mosca and Rick Stepton, pianists Bob Kaye or Barry Keiner, electric bass guitarist Tom Warrington, saxophonists Bob Mintzer, Gary Pribeck, and longtime running mate Steve Marcus. This is thoroughly modern big-band music, vibrant and brimming with energy and delight as demonstrated by the two openers, the 6/8 "Goodbye Yesterday" and the hard swinging "Machine." These charts are read to strict tolerance, but have a breadth and depth of variety not normally associated with a commercial jazz enterprise. Two of Bill Holman's compositions are here -- the supercharged bopper "Ready Mix, " and the easier swinging "Loose," the latter employing a lovely flute cadenza.
Track List (try tracks 1,2,3,4 and 6)

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