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Steve Waterman: Night Lights
(Mainstem)
Steve Waterman, the tradition-steeped UK trumpeter and flugelhornist, has devoted two recent CDs to repertory-band recoveries of jazz classics, comparing the compositions of jazz innovators of different generations : those of Benny Golson and Wayne Shorter, and Tadd Dameron and Herbie Hancock. This third set mingles the repertoires of the late Cool School saxophonist Gerry Mulligan and Chick Corea, one of post-bop, fusion and Latin-jazz's most imaginative creators. Waterman's moody trumpet over Anthony Kerr's vibes precede a soft shuffle on Corea's 500 Miles High. And if Birth of the Cool's Jeru is a bit bright and brash compared to the softly swaying original, the band warmly embrace its sharp turns and melodic ingenuity. But the sound that leaps out of the elegant melee is Omar Puente's rapturous violin on the cool groover of Armando's Rhumba. Despite the slick and expert arrangements, there's no convincing reason why you wouldn't stick with the originals, but devotees of the UK regulars here (the great Alan Barnes is also in the sax section) might welcome hearing them anew on such a rich repertoire.