Bob Lark and Friends – Cathy’s Song – Jazzed Media JM 1050, 55:11 ****:
(Artists include: Bob Lark, flugelhorn and muted trumpet; Jim McNeely and Ron Perrillo, piano; Phil Woods, alto sax; Rufus Reid and Eric Hochberg, bass; Bob Rummage, drums; plus strings on Tracks 1,5, & 9; and additional horns on Tracks 4 & 7)
We’ve dug Bob Lark’s lyrical trumpet and flugelhorn playing for some time. His CDs with Phil Woods, and those leading the DePaul University Jazz Big Band with guest artists like Clark Terry have been welcome additions to the Jazzed Media CD roster of CDs.
Lark’s latest finds him branching out with arrangements for nonet, string section and jazz trio without piano. Lark brings back his frequent partners, altoist supreme Phil Woods, and brilliant pianist Jim McNeely. Bassist Rufus Reid is also here on the four trio numbers. Lark’s pallet is broadened by adding a full horn section on “Goodbye Mr. Evans” and “Rava Nova.” From the Great American Songbook, lush versions of “Blue Skies”, and “My Shining Hour” are featured, and Lark also gives his wife a precious gift with “Cathy’s Song”, ably arranged by Thomas Matta.
I’ve always felt that Lark’s trumpet playing had a classical purity with pitch-perfect midrange. On Cathy’s Song, we get an even more exquisite warmness from his flugelhorn and muted trumpet. “Blue Skies” begins our romantic milieu and “Tango Caliente” done as a trio, matches McNeely with Lark, in step together with the bottom end provided softly by master bassist, Rufus Reid. “On Green Dolphin Street” Lark’s muted trumpet has a soft upper register “bite” that counterbalances Jim McNeely’s sensitive piano lines and Reid gets a chance to show off his woody bass tone.
Woods’ tribute to Bill Evans, “Goodbye Mr. Evans” is sublime as the horns meld before Phil’s alto improvises several blues choruses and Lark’s flugelhorn fleshes out the ballad. Bob Rummage’s drums set a prominent ballast for the string section on “My Shining Hour.” Phil’s “Rava Nova” is the closest thing to up tempo swinger, as Woods picks up steam complemented briefly by the horn section before McNeely has his say matching Phil in intensity.
The title track closes out the CD and its lushness is not sappy or saccharine, but an apt match for the tranquil photo on the cover of the CD booklet with the sun setting on a calm sea fronted by a palm tree.
For late night listening, Cathy’s Song will ease away the stresses of our hectic lives. It’s a perfect summer release.
TrackList: Blue Skies, Tango Caliente, On Green Dolphin Street, Goodbye Mr. Evans, My Shining Hour, Winter’s Touch, Rava Nova, All of You, Cathy’s Song
– Jeff Krow
