Mosaic Select-Carmell Jones CD

Trumpeter Carmell Jones is best known as a sideman (especially Horace Silver's Song for My Father), but he made several valuable recordings as a leader, though most have long languished out of print. To correct this oversight, Mosaic Select released this three-CD set in early 2003, including all three of his earliest Pacific Jazz albums (The Remarkable Carmell Jones, Business Meetin' , and Brass Bag), as well as a long unavailable Harold Land disc and a previously unreleased date led by pianist Frank Strazzeri. The quintet with Land and Strazzeri works wonders with Jones' jazz waltz "That's Good" and a similar treatment of "Beautiful Love," but the high point of their various sets is the 11-minute workout of Duke Ellington's "I'm Gonna Go Fishin'." Jones is accompanied by five reed players and a rhythm section on a later date; check out his marvelous playing in the richly textured chart of "Stella By Starlight." Gerald Wilson's stimulating scoring includes an unusual five trombones in a nonet; Jones' conversational muted horn makes Duke Ellington's "Mood Indigo" shine. A later Wilson-arranged date with two trombones produced the snappy rendition of Dizzy Gillespie's "Ow!" Strazzeri's studio date merited release originally, but producer Dick Bock thought the pianist's playing was too reserved. Maybe his originals aren't as memorable as Hoagy Carmichael's "New Orleans," but Jones shines without trying to show up anyone else. The final session, led by Land, is a fun-filled exploration of folk tunes in a jazz setting. Most of the solos are quite enjoyable, though Land has some problems with reed squeaking at times. This smaller-sized set, a numbered limited edition of just 5,000, fills a valuable gap in Carmell Jones' discography and it is destined to become a sought-after collector's item. Available through www.mosaicrecords.com. ~ Ken Dryden