One For All – No Problem (2003) [Japan 2016] [SACD ISO + DSF DSD64 + Hi-Res FLAC]

One For All – No Problem (2003) [Japan 2016] [SACD ISO + DSF DSD64 + Hi-Res FLAC]
SACD Rip | SACD ISO | DSD64 2.0 > 1-bit/2.8224 MHz | 62:51 minutes | Front/Rear Covers | 2,09 GB
or DSD64 2.0 (from SACD-ISO to Tracks.dsf) > 1-bit/2.8224 MHz | Front/Rear Covers | 1,84 GB
or FLAC (carefully converted & encoded to tracks) 24bit/48 kHz | Front/Rear Covers | 879 MB

One for All have been an active New York City-based collective with fairly steady personnel except for the bass chair, which has rotated between several players. On this 2003 session for the Japanese Venus label, Ray Drummond joins tenorist Eric Alexander, trombonist Steve Davis, trumpeter Jim Rotondi, pianist David Hazeltine, and drummer Joe Farnsworth, the latter members all being part of the core group back to its creation in the mid-’90s. Most of the selections on this date are associated with Art Blakey’s Jazz Messengers, having been written for the late drummer’s band or popularized by him, while the band’s name was the title of Blakey’s final album as a leader. It’s easy to imagine Blakey digging Farnsworth’s cooking tribute “Our Father Who Art Blakey.” Duke Jordan’s “No Problem” was a part of the Blakey repertoire during the late ’50s; this arrangement gives it a decidedly Latin flavor. Hazeltine’s soft touch in “Moanin'” is a refreshing change from the often heavy-handed interpretations. The exuberant “Time Off” sounds like it should have been a set closer, but this furious piece works regardless of its placement in the program, highlighted by Davis’ blistering solo. For a change of pace, there’s a lush treatment of Duke Ellington’s “Prelude to a Kiss,” showcasing a passionate Alexander solo.This starlit group hits the ground running with drummer Joe Farnsworth’s driving tribute to Art Blakey: It’s an introduction that says, “we have arrived, folks, just buckle up and ride.” Not a hard thing to do and great fun to boot. Recorded at New York’s historic Avatar Studios in April of 2003, the sextet’s combined mastery and energy are impressive to say the least. One for All includes some of the brightest lights in jazz today, who apply themselves to a spirited program of classics and two band originals — the aforementioned blistering “Our Father…” and trombonist Steve Davis’s infectious closer, “One for All.”

Fans of Eric Alexander’s masterful tenor work will be especially delighted by his solo on “No Problem.” So will David Hazeltine fans, and Jim Rotondi fans, and….in fact, the consistently strong solos are some of the many pleasures of this disk, along with the band’s ability to play together as a driving force. The fact that the arrangements of classics like “Moanin'” and “Whisper Not” are pretty standard detracts nothing from the pleasure of their rendering by a group of this caliber.

On “Time Off,” where trombonist Steve Davis first displays the group’s communal intention to take no prisoners, I was reminded of the old Maxell ad where the music blows the listener’s hair straight back. The guys finally take a breath on “Prelude,” in an interesting arrangement where Alexander evokes the ghost of Coltrane’s ballad playing and Drummond steps up to the melody.

Recorded so frontally that it sounds live, One for All is a powerful supergroup recording that cures the winter blues.

Tracklist:

01. Our Father Who Art Blaky
02. No Problem
03. Moanin’
04. Whisper Not
05. Ugetsu
06. Time Off
07. Prelude To A Kiss
08. One For All

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