Dave Sumner, Bird is the Worm
Artist: Ellen Rowe Octet
Album: Momentum: Portraits of Women in Motion
Label: Smokin’ Sleddog Records
Favorite track: “Ain’t I A Woman”
Style: Straight-ahead
Music from: Ann Arbor, MI
What I like about it: I like how every note, every expression sounds like it’s all heart. I like how this ensemble illustrates the wide range of emotions that fall under the purview of the blues. I like how this album takes a classic sound and makes it feel brand spankin’ new… even as it feeds the soul with a nostalgia for loved Blue Note Records bop sessions.
This is a recording that will snap into place with any time of day, any place, any mood, anything at all where you need something good to make everything better.
Your album personnel: Ellen Rowe (piano), Tia Fuller (alto sax), Virginia Mayhew(tenor sax), Lisa Parrott (baritone sax), Ingrid Jensen (trumpet), Melissa Gardiner(trombone), Allison Miller (drums) and guests: Janelle Reichman (clarinet), Marion Hayden (bass), Marlene Rosenberg (bass).