Search - Brass Connection :: Five Star

Absolutely FANTASTIC!

Dr. Christopher Coleman | HONG KONG | 10/07/2003

(5 out of 5 stars)

"In "A Five Star Edition" the Canadian trombone quintet plus rhythm section is joined (one at a time) by trombone giants Carl Fontana, Jiggs Whigham, and Bill Watrous. Brass Connection is a terrific group (see my review of their CD "Standards"), but when these special soloists join in, they reach stellar heights. My favorites are the ballad "Song for a Special Lady" (which features not one of the three soloists mentioned above, but the Brass Connection's lead player Ian McDougall, who has a gorgeous buttery sound), "Airegin" (an uptempo number featuring a lot of unison bebop trombone ensemble and soloist Jiggs Whigham), and "Stella", where Carl Fontana, no spring chicken at the time of this recording, proves he can still leave anybody in the dust. It's a bit of a shame that there wasn't at least one track that all the soloists played on together, but nonetheless, this is a superior album. Even more than "Standards", "A Five Star Edition" is a true must-have for BeBop lovers, trombonists, and jazz fans in general."