This is a criminally little known album by the celebrated British Jazz trumpeter / composer Kenny Wheeler, released on the short-lived and sadly forgotten Ah Um Records, owned by Nick Purnell. Wheeler leads a splendid ensemble, which comprises of the absolute crème de la crème of the British Jazz scene at the time: saxophonists Stan Sulzmann and Julian Arguelles, French horn player John Rook, trombonists Dave Horler and Dave Stewart, pianist John Taylor, bassist Chris Laurence and American drummer Peter Erskine. Trombonist Chris Pyne and pianist John Horler are added on the four last tracks only. The album presents seven Wheeler originals, the last four of which create a suite. All the music was recorded during a one-day session, which is absolutely amazing considering the complexity of the arrangements, but of course all these musicians were absolute Masters of the trade.
The music is obviously absolutely brilliant, as everything Wheeler ever created and most of it was never recorded by Wheeler again with other ensembles. He briefly describes the origin of all the compositions on the album in the liner notes, one of which is a wonderfully crafted tribute to Chick Corea's compositions, a rather unlikely connection, but nevertheless true.
The playing is of course also magnificent from start to finish, with plenty of wonderful solos by the participants and a superb ensemble performance, typical of British Jazz at its absolute best. The music was also excellently recorded with wonderful separation and perfect sound quality, which of curse enhances the listening pleasure even more.
Overall this is lost perfect gem which deserves a proud place in any serious British Jazz collection, and although quite difficult to come by these days, it is by all means worth the effort needed to hunt for it. Essential Kenny Wheeler! - Jazzis
Tracklist
1 5 4 6
2 Gentle Piece - Old Ballad
3 Kayak
4 See Horse
5 Sea Lady
6 C Man
7 C.C. Signor!
KENNY WHEELER trumpet and flugelhorn
JOHN ROOK french horn
STAN SULZMANN soprano and tenor saxophones, flute
JULIAN ARGÜELLES soprano and tenor saxophones
DAVE HORLER trombone
CHRIS PYNE trombone
DAVE STEWART bass trombone and tuba
JOHN TAYLOR piano
JOHN HORLER piano (4, 6, 7)
CHRIS LAURENCE bass
PETER ERSKINE drums
All music composed by Kenny Wheeler
Recorded May 1, 1992 at Angel Recording Studios, Islington, London, United Kingdom,
Ah Um – ah um 012 (United Kingdom)