That's Right!

This debut recording of the Brad Goode Quintet (but18th for Goode as leader) is special: added was Ernie Watts, tenor saxophonist.The veteran musician shares the stage with Andrean Farrugia at the piano, Kelly Sill with bass, Adam Nussbaum before the drums, and Goode himself on trumpet. Except for an Arlen & Mercer tune and one by tenor saxophonist Von Freeman, with whom Goode had often performed, the tracks are by members of the Quintet. An associate professor at University of Colorado at Boulder, Goode trained at University of Kentucky and DePaul University and worked with Von Freeman, Eddie Harris, Jack DeJohnette, and Curtis Fuller. He soon organized a quartet and has performed for over a decade. Beginning with a lovely yet smoking saxophone ballad, Half Moon, the album continues with a darker, trumpet noir-tinged Regret. Watts adds the sound of a midnight nightclub, followed by Sill's quiet bass commentaries. The moody track sets the stage for a dramatic shift to Perplexity, a bright polytonal tune of layered chords, with muted trumpet, agitated piano, furious saxophone, and punctuating drumwork. The soothing Blues in the Night is old-school and honky-tonk. Bottled plunger muted trumpet leads with the familiar melody, as the tenor brings counterpoint elaboration. The jazz waltz A Sense of Fairness is a bass vehicle full of horn harmony and brushes. Watt's own composing contribution is Letter from Home, where the trumpet's primary role is harmony to the funky saxophone lead and Farrugia dominates the second half. Triple counterpoint of piano, tenor, and then Harmon-muted trumpet develop We Three, which shifts into a bossa nova for kicks. Solos are the entire point for Who Parked the Car. The ballad I Want to Talk About You has polytonal dissonance yet remains valid to melody and mood. The final piece, Jug Ain't Gone, honors Goode's late mentor Von Freeman with a hard blazing blues. The rich variety of inventive compositions, the well-matched instrumental interplay, the technical virtuosity of the musicians, and their long experience create a solid, eminently satisfying jazz album.