Free To Be is the natural successor to Harrison’s 1997 release, Nouveau Swing, which won some attention for the alto saxophonist’s elegantly liquid playing and a conception based on straight head jazz rhythms subtly transformed by street (pop, R&B, hip-hop) and Third World (reggae, samba, calypso) beats.
Free To Be extends the idea, relying on sources even deeper in the eclectic saxophonist’s experience: pop jazz (he recorded an album, “The Power of Cool, on Creed Taylor’s CTI label), Latin jazz (he toured for several years in the band of Eddie Palmieri, who makes a guest appearance), and New Orleans funk (he covers the Meters’ classic hit, “Cissy Strut,” at breakneck tempo and adds a tenor sax on the original “Indian Blues,” a tribute to his father, cheif of the Guardians of the flame Black Indian tribe who died last year).
Self-produced and flawlessly structured, Free To Be is even more elusive disingenuous than Nouveau Swing, emphasizing fluency of expression, restraint, and witty discernment on a series of sleek arrangements that bear no obvious traces of bebop.
Harrison states his case on three numbers backed by his’ current working band (which includes hip hop dj/drummer John Lamkin), then elaborates it on four selections backed by established veterans Mulgrew Miller on piano, Christian McBride on bailS, and Carl,Allen on drums. The final series adds guitar and percussion with Harrison’s vocal elaborating his thesis on a reprise of “Nouveau Swing,” before exiting on “Feelin’ Jazzy, Baby.” With titles like “Mr. Cool Breeze” and “Smooth Sailing,” the casual listener might be tempted to dismiss all this as simply an excursion in easy listening; in fact, this release more than most rewards repeated listening with fresh insights and discoveries.
Free To Be does exactly what postmodern jazz ought to be doing-not just marrying a pair of cultural influences but exploring an accessible synthesis of many influences that points to a new, reconstructive aesthetic. And all the while swinging like a demon. If you care about the music’s future and want to know where the real innovators are, put Donald Harrison at the top of the list.
