My Shining Hour

It seems as though guitarist Bobby Broom has found a home on Seattle's Origin label, but somehow I must have missed this 2014 release. It is still available and worth telling you about. Broom takes off in very straight-ahead fashion with his trio mates, Dennis Carroll (bass) and Makaya McCraven (drums) on a menu of nine much admired standards. Broom is equally impressive whether playing single-note passages or rich, rewarding chords. His improvisations tend to be a little quirky and off the center of the highway, but always creative and musical. By the way, Broom's tune list includes such winners as "Sweet And Lovely," "My Ideal," "Just One Of Those Things," "Sweet Georgia Brown," "Jitterbug Waltz," and "Lady Be Good." Two surprises are "Tennessee Waltz," and a beautiful rendition of the classic Lerner and Lowe melody from Brigadoon, "The Heather On the Hill." Broom surely respects the guitar. You can hear it in every note.