Duke & Strays Live
Corner Store Jazz, 2024
9/10
Day Dream, i.e. Phil Haynes, Steve Rudolph and Drew Gress, come together for these songs that pay tribute to Duke Ellington and Billy Strayhorn across 2 discs of live recordings.
The ambience of “African Flower” opens with Haynes’ mysterious drumming amid Gress’ moody bass dynamics, and “Perdido” follows with Rudolph’s upbeat piano guiding the playful bass of the flowing climate.
“Lush Life” exits the first disc with a sense of intimacy, where the cozy bass and mature keys are complemented by light drumming, while “Come Sunday” starts disc 2 with frisky drumming and warm bass plucking.
Landing near the end, “Lotus Blossom” offers a rich and reflective album highlight of timeless beauty, and “My Little Brown Book/Take The ‘A’ Train” exits with 12+ minutes of strong interaction between the trio, where they all showcase their inimitable talents in spades.
This is Day Dream’s 3rd album, and like the ones before it, it’s full of memorable jazz ideas and will appeal to both traditionalists and modernists.
Travels well with: Brandon Seabrook- Object Of Unknown Function; Kevin Sun- Quartets