Last Option

8 Bold Souls: Edward Wilkerson, Jr. (alto & tenor saxophones, clarinet, alto clarinet); Mwata Bowden (baritone saxophone, clarinet); Robert Griffin (trumpet, piccolo trumpet, flugelhorn); Isaiah Jackson (trombone, percussion); Gerald Powell (tuba); Naomi Millender (cello); Harrison Bankhead
(bass); Dunshun Mosley (drums, percussion).
Recorded at Electrical Audio Recording, Chicago, Illinois on August 7 & 8, 1999.
Though to many New York City is the center of the jazz universe, Chicago has always rivaled--if not equaled--it as a fertile environment for cutting-edge jazz. 8 Bold Souls is an octet with composer/multi-reed player Edward Wilkerson, Jr. at the helm, and the group is as daring, inventive, and satisfying as any on the early 21st-century American jazz landscape. Wilkerson composes thoughtfully eclectic tunes that demonstrate an appreciation of the varied history of American music in general and jazz in particular.
"Third One Smiles" is a mid-tempo funk piece with percolating New Orleans rhythms and bristling hot-bop trumpet solos--imagine Lee Morgan's "Sidewinder" at a Mardi Gras jam session. "The Art of Tea" is a slow, torch-blues tune, rich with Duke Ellington-style textures (a big influence throughout) and a low-down cello solo. "Pachinko" is a surreal tango around the cartoon cosmos, and "Gang of Four" juxtaposes classical-sounding brass melodies, more New Orleans swagger, and '50s cool-school swing. If inventive composition with emotional directness are what you crave; if you like the twists and quirks of Henry Threadgill, Carla Bley, George Russell or the Lounge Lizards, this OPTION should be at the top of your list.