As regular readers know, my strong preference in jazz is for the straight-ahead and swinging, and I particularly tend not to gravitate towards funk- or progressive jazz. Nothing against those styles, they just don't generally speak to me. But this album by trumpeter and composer Brad Goode really connected for me — in part because his funkiness is crunchy and complex rather than poppy, in part because his tone is exquisite, and in part because he just writes really, really great heads. Also, unlike many other jazz musicians, he's not afraid of space: notice the extended periods of unadorned groove on "Decathexis," for example. His taste in covers is excellent, too: there's a very fine arrangement of "The Windmills of Your Mind," a rollicking take on the Tropicalia classic "Jo'a" (prominently featuring drummer Paa Kow and also featuring some very cool Jon Hassell-style trumpet treatments), and a tender version of Jania Ian's "At Seventeen." Highly recommended.