Eric Jacobson – Heading Home (Origin)

Trumpeter Eric Jacobson has a new album out, Heading Home, and I’m digging this one a whole lot. The Milwaukee native put together an outstanding band to play eight of his compositions on the disc, with the excellent pianist Bruce Barth, as well as familiar faces in saxophonist Geof Bradfield, bassist Dennis Carroll, and drummer George Fludas. Jacobson gets right down to business with the opening cut, “Survival” which burns pretty hot. Barth sets the table for the lovely mid-tempo waltz “Three of a Kind,” which also features some moving soloing from both Bradfield and Jacobson. Jacobson stretches out on the ballad “My Love for Amy,” “Sunset Suite” is a pretty cool Jazz Samba, and the clever title of “You’re Alright. The World’s All Wrong” has a melody that’s just as charming as its name.

Michael Wolff – Memoir (Sunnyside)

Pianist Michael Wolff is an interesting character. The last pianist to play in Cannonball Adderley’s Quintet, he filled some enormous shoes. He’s had a movie made about his life (The Tic Code), and he’s made some fantastic music of his own through the years. His latest album, Memoir, puts him in a trio with bassist Ben Allison and drummer Allan Mednard. Among these eleven tracks, there’s one standard, a thoughtful take on “You’ve Changed.” The other ten songs are from Wolff’s pen and they’re cool in a bunch of different ways. “Left Out” hints at Brad Mehldau’s playing. “Zawinul,” “No Lo Contendre” and “Jamaican Turnaround” all sound like an acoustic, inside-out take on mid-70’s Weather Report. Interestingly, when Wolff does turn to an electric keyboard (a Fender Rhodes in this case), he approaches that instrument in a unique way that prioritizes texture and space. Both “On My Mind” and “Sad Clown” benefit from this approach. Memoir is the exceedingly rare album that’s been actually fun to write about. It’s even more fun to listen to. I’m looking forward to sharing it with you!

Warren Wolf – History of the Vibraphone (Cellar Music)

Vibraphonist Warren Wolf has a new album out, and for History of the Vibraphone, he’s going back to his inspirations, from Lionel Hampton to Joe Locke, and a bunch of great vibes players in between. Not all of the songs here were written by vibraphonists; the nod to Gary Burton comes from Chick Corea’s “Captain Senor Mouse” and the salute to Milt Jackson comes via John Lewis’ “Django.” Joined by saxophonist Tim Green, pianist Alex Brown, bassist Vicente Archer and drummer Carroll Dashiell, this group can and does cover a whole lot of ground. Bobby Hutcherson’s “Herzog” rips at an intense pace, and feels like a mid-60’s Blue Note highlight. The aforementioned “Captain Senor Mouse” sounds like the classic Chick and Gary duets AND like an all-acoustic Return to Forever at different points of its 8 minute runtime. Roy Ayers’ “Vibrations” and Wolf’s own “I See You Looking at Me, Baby” both sound like smooth 70’s Jazz-Funk goodness, and I for one, am here for it. Warren Wolf’s History of the Vibraphone might not be complete (how could it be in only one disc?), but it’s certainly a well thought out and well played example of plenty of signposts along the way.