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| 4.300 Ft
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| 1. | Noble
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| 2. | So Wrong About You
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| 3. | I'm Old Fashioned
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| 4. | Z
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| 5. | I'm Glad There Is You
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| 6. | Deja-Blu
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| 7. | If
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| 8. | Aah Soon Come
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| 9. | We'll Be Together Again
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| 10. | Stubbs
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Jazz
Clifton Anderson (trombone)
Larry Williams (trumpet), Bob Cranshaw (bass), Al Foster (drums), Kenny Garrett (tenor sax), Stephen Scott (piano), Christian McBride (bass), Steve Jordan (drums), Eric Wyatt (tenor sax), Kimati Dinizulu (percussion)
Trombonist Clifton Anderson has been playing with Sonny Rollins for more than twenty five years. Decade confirms that Anderson has plenty to say on his own as well. Drawing upon his impeccable instrumental command (which received an important boost through work with fellow trombonists Robin Eubanks, Steve Turre, and especially Slide Hampton).
An imposing range of other experience (including work with Muhal Richard Abrams, Lester Bowie's Brass Fantasy, Geri Allen, and Wallace Roney), a compositional gift that can be heard on six of the present tracks, and a sure sense of how to build a supporting ensemble, he has created a program that provides the most complete and exciting gauge of his talent to date.
Six of the tracks are built around the imposing rhythm section of pianist Larry Willis, bassist Bob Cranshaw, and drummer Al Foster. There are a couple of natural affinities within this group: the Rollins band, where Cranshaw has been ensconced nearly twice as long as Anderson, and where Foster worked extensively in the '70s and occasionally since; and New York's High School of Music and Art, the alma mater of Anderson and Willis. Cranshaw was the bassist when Willis made his recording debut (on Jackie McLean's Right Now!), and Foster was the drummer on both Willis's first and most recent sessions as a leader. This is a foursome with much shared history, and it can be heard in the music they make together.
"Noble," which back in the bebop era might have been titled "Nobility," is Anderson's tribute to Gil Noble, the host and producer of WABC-TV's Like It Is for the past four decades, and the emcee at Sonny Rollins's recent and triumphant Carnegie Hall concert. The melody conveys the strength and seriousness of its subject, and the strong chord changes inspire solos in kind from Anderson (who begins strolling on bass and drums) and Willis. An equally impressive theme carries "So Wrong About You," which is performed as a walking ballad. Both Anderson's writing and playing balance melancholy and resolve, with the latter emotion winning out (especially in the second trombone solo) and Willis with him in support all the way. Note the ease with which Anderson moves between long, virtuosic lines and more emphatic vocalizations in his solo. After the piano chorus, Cranshaw steps forward to remind us that he remains a master of the upright as well as the electric bass.
Two standards find this quartet in other moods. "I'm Old Fashioned" is a hard swinger that swings harder as Anderson's solo progresses. His muted sound here is worth noting, as is his free-flowing opening with only Foster in support. The drummer is also heard at the top of "I'm Glad There Is You," but alone this time, using mallets to set up a theme chorus where the focus is on the melody and Anderson's glorious sound. This track is a lesson in pacing, with emotions building through the trombone and piano solos to a heartfelt coda.
Eric Wyatt, who has been heard in New York of late leading the jam sessions at Sweet Rhythm, joins the same personnel on two Anderson originals. Wyatt is Rollins's godson (his dad, Charles Wyatt, was an alto player and one of Rollins's boyhood friends), and he has clearly attended to his godfather in matters of phrase-building and rhythmic articulation while still developing his own sound. Fittingly, the two Anderson originals that feature Wyatt's horn are closest to the feeling of the working Rollins band. "Deja-Blu" is a blues with a strong medium-tempo groove, nicely harmonized and employing the opening phrase to launch tenor and trombone solos after Willis takes the first spot. "Aah Soon Come," a calypso line, includes Cranshaw's sole appearance on electric bass and adds percussionist Kimati Dinizulu from the Rollins band on percussion. In addition to the dance-inducing solos, the track reminds us how expert Foster is in the area of Caribbean rhythms.
Clifton Anderson
Active Decade: '90s
Born: Oct 05, 1957 in New York, NY
Genre: Jazz
Styles: Hard Bop
Clifton Anderson, the nephew of Sonny Rollins and a longtime member of his band, has long been in the awkward position of sharing the stage with his uncle, standing motionless while Rollins takes extended solos. In 1996 on his own excellent Landmarks recording (Milestone), Anderson finally had the opportunity to step out from his uncle's giant shadow. Anderson started on trombone at age seven, when Sonny Rollins bought him his first instrument. He attended the High School of Music and Art in New York City, graduated from the Manhattan School of Music, and worked with Slide Hampton's World of Trombones, Frank Foster's Loud Minority, McCoy Tyner's Orchestra, Lester Bowie's Brass Fantasy, and Abdullah Ibrahim before joining Rollins' band in 1983. Influenced most by J.J. Johnson, Clifton Anderson remains quite underrated.
---Scott Yanow, All Music Guide |
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