Your Check's In The Mail

Stan Bock was born in a family of musicians. His father played cornet and was a high school band director; his mother was a piano teacher. By age 15, young Stan was playing "tailgate" trombone in his father's Dixieland band.

After earning degrees at Fort Hays State (Kansas) and the University of Northern Iowa, Bock entered the Air Force Band program in 1975, where he remained until he retired in 1994. He then moved to Portland, Ore., where he became one of the key jazz trombonists in that area.

Bock wrote four and arranged all of the tunes on this CD, which teams him with eight of Portland's finest jazz performers: Warren Rand and Renato Canato, sax; Paul Mazzio, trumpet; George Mitchell, piano and Hammond B-3 organ; Jattik Clark, tuba; Dave Captein, acoustic and electronic bass; and Mel Brown and Mitch Wilson, sharing drums.

Bock also adds a euphonium to his trombone arsenal on some tracks ... what a sweet sound!

The resulting octet is one of the most enjoyable, smooth and swinging groups I've heard lately, and it's obvious that everybody is having fun. I'm amazed by how much Clark's tuba adds to the brass section; a huge hole occurs when he's not blowing!

Every member of the group solos, and all are excellent; the solo lines are fluid and musical at every tempo. These guys sound like they've payed together for years. (They have).

The tunes include gems such as "Green Dolphin Street," "A Night In Tunisia," and "I'll Remember April," and the band's cover of George Strait's "I Cross My Heart" demonstrates that whether it be country or straight-ahead, it's all blues.

Add this one to your library.