Ask most musicians about their influences and they’ll likely give you a lengthy list of greats in their chosen genre and/or their main instrument. Saxophonist/composer Paul Carlon, who has a long, exciting history of playing in all manner of Latin bands, starts his answer in the conventional way (Woody Shaw, Gene Ammons) but then reveals that he is also indebted to his mother, a talented visual artist whose work surrounded him growing up and whose discipline and work ethic inspired his own. His late sister was also a visual artist and his wife Vita, the namesake of his latest album Blues For Vita also illuminated in the vibrant cover art, is a former actor.
“Blues For Vita” is thus the perfect emotional centerpiece and entry point into the experience of this eight- track collection, an easy swinging, percussively bustling romp featuring Carlon’s lyrical sax melody and one of trumpeter Eddie Allen’s signature sizzling solos and a lively, swirling piano solo by Helio Alves.
Carlon’s four other vibrant originals include the punchy, drum and brass intensive “Dee Dot,” the most straight ahead tune on the set that draws from another classic Carlon influence, Art Blakey and features Allen’s first killer solo on the set; the sly, steamy Latin fired (and Eddie Harris-vibing) “Colored Paper”; and the cleverly titled, wildly adventurous “Unmute,” a sublime showcase for Carlon’s snazzy improvisational skills, which give way once again to Allen’s unbridled magic. The quintet also performs colorful renditions of the standards “Never Will I Marry” (whose message is given punchy emphasis by the punchy horn harmonies) and “It Never Entered My Mind,” which reflects the ensemble’s gentler graces.
Carlon shares his enduring love for Woody Shaw with a playful, freewheeling jam through Larry Willis’ twist and turn filled “Isabel the Liberator,” which was also performed by Willis’ group Jerry Gonzalez and the Fort Apache Band, one of Carlon’s favorites.
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