Stride is the name of the game. With the pianist Emmet Cohen are bassist Russell Hall and drummer Kyle Poole plus trumpeter Sean Jones and saxophonist Patrick Barclay. The tracks with the horns are most involving. Did Uptown in Orbit move me? Not really hand on heart but it's not that kind of record more one where you admire the musicianship more than most and even more than that do a helluva a lot of time travelling and wishing you were around in New York when stride was new.
And yet the style itself despite notable efforts has dated more than most. Cohen is a master of the idiom as is perfectly clear to anyone who has followed his work on or offline in recent years and this latest record continues a remarkable studio streak.
Material includes Cohen and Poole originals plus work by Willie “The Lion” Smith (1939's 'Finger Buster'), Neal Hefti, Cedar Walton, Gerry Mulligan and Duke Ellington. 'My Love Will Come Again' featuring a gorgeous horn line from Sean Jones answered achingly by Barclay is along with 'Finger Buster' streaming ahead of the album's 28 October release. SG
Tags: