Iron City: The Business (2011)

GLENN ASTARITA,

Glenn Astarita

Senior Contributor since 1997

Longtime contributor to AAJ and Downbeat, Jazz Review, EjazzNews, Radio DirectX.

Recent articles (1,629 total)

Published: July 23, 2011

Track review of "Blue String"

Guitarist Charlie Apicella and his band mates mix it up nicely with these originals and jazz standards, disavowing a rough-hewn presence and sporting a piquant mode of execution. The artists morph a somewhat traditional blue collar approach to the classic organ-combo into a contemporized product. The band may not 't reinvent the genre, but the diverse and largely up-tempo track mix rounds out a balanced approach, spanning blues, funk, Latin and swing.

One of the album highlights is tenor sax titan Sonny Stitt's "Blue String," where the soloists ride atop drummer Alan Korzin's thrusting backbeat, as organist Dave Mattock comps the rhythm and provides a launching pad for the sequential frontline solo spots.

Supported by whispery sax parts, fluid organ voicings and subtle theme variations, Apicella conveys maturity amid a deep-rooted understanding of this format via brisk runs, linear developments, spirited accents, and groove-oriented jazz lines. Ultimately, the guitarist mans a course that should whet the appetites of a heterogeneous jazz-centric fan-base, enamored with nicely selected inferences to outlying genres.

Personnel: Charlie Apicella: guitar; Dave Mattock: organ; Alan Korzin: drums; Stephen Riley: tenor sax; Maya Casales: congas, percussion.

Record Label: Self Produced
Style: Funk/Groove