Jesse Davis Quartet: Reflections

New Orleans-bred Jesse Davis delves into the soulful side of the alto saxophone on Reflections, his tenth album as leader and one that was recorded on New York's Long Island, far from Davis' home base of Verona, Italy, where he has lived for more than 20 years with his wife and daughter.

One of the perks of recording in New York is the accessibility of blue-ribbon rhythm sections, and Davis has checked that box by enlisting the services of pianist Spike Wilner, bassist John Webber and drummer Lewis Nash. While there may be other sections as savvy and skillful as that, finding one would be the equivalent of locating the proverbial needle in a very large and messy haystack.

Davis wrote four of the album's seven numbers, adding a pair from the pen of Thelonious Monk. The other is Davis' loving salute to his hometown, Eddie DeLange and Louis Alter's plaintive ballad, "Do You Know What It Means to Miss New Orleans," first performed in 1947 by Louis Armstrong and Lena Horne. Davis opens with the mid-tempo blues, "Blue Autumn," written, he says, to mark the tragic loss of a family member some years ago.

Monk's ardent "Reflections" is next, followed by a slow blues, Davis' "Choctaw Alley" (the name of an actual street in New Orleans), the shuffling "Funk Sugo" (sauce) and smoothly melodic "It's Just Farewell." Davis and his mates loosen the throttle only on Monk's decisive "Evidence" (neatly introduced by Nash's muscular drum kit), yet even here the venture lands far short of flag-waving territory.

Nash's solos are impressive, but no more so than Wilner's or Webber's (each of whom is heard to good effect on most numbers). Davis, however, is the album's hub and linchpin, and he never fails to deliver the goods, nurturing a lineage spawned more than 85 years ago by the incomparable Charlie Parker. Davis' fans should know pretty much what to expect. Even though possibly a measure or so too laid- back for some tastes, Reflections is a better-than-average session whose lustrous blueprint and superb musicianship make it well worth one's time.

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