CD of the Month - "Carla Bley: Appearing Nightly"

CD of the Month
Carla Bley and Her Remarkable! Big Band: "Appearing Nightly" (Watt/ECM) 2008

That her band is deemed "remarkable" is no understatement; trumpeter Lew Soloff, wild trombonist Gary Valente and saxophonists Andy Sheppard (tenor), Wolfgang Puschnig (alto) and Julian Argüelles (baritone a la Joe Temperley/Pepper Adams) are among the outstanding underrated soloists. Bley's four originals are, as usual, intricate, absorbing, and often moving, with opener "Greasy Gravy" (comissioned by Orchestra Jazz della Sardegna along with "Awful Coffee") and the 25-minute epic suite "Appearing Nightly at the Black Orchid" (comissioned by the Monterey Jazz Festival) standing out. Her wondrous arrangement of Ray Noble's "I Hadn't Anyone Till You" closes the 54-minute CD with a lyrical flourish.

Since the 1960s, Carla Bley has been composing for big bands in a way that enriches the tradition and history of jazz, while creating new possibilities for the form. Produced by Carla and her longtime soulmate Steve Swallow (pianist Paul Bley and trumpeter Michael Mantler were her previous husbands), "Appearing Nightly," recorded live at The New Morning, Paris, on July 17 & 18, 2006, is yet another notch in her string of achievements. From the retro-themed cover art to the progressive yet nostalgia-tinged work within, Bley's work looks forward and backward at once. Released on September 9, 2008, it's one of the best albums of the year, confirming Carla Bley as the unsurpassed top female arranger/composer/big band leader in the contemporary jazz scene (and also as one of the top arrangers/composers/big band leaders of any genre, of course).

Carla Bley Big Band: Carla Bley (acoustic piano), Steve Swallow (electric bass), Billy Drummond (drums), Karen Mantler (organ), Roger Jannotta (flute, soprano sax & alto sax), Wolfgang Pusching (flute, alto sax), Christophe Panzani & Andy Sheppard (tenor sax), Julian Arguelles (baritone saxophone); Giampaolo Casati, Florian Esch, Lew Soloff & Earl Gardner (trumpets), Gigi Grata, Beppe Calamosca, Gary Valente & Richard Henry (trombones).