Dropzone Records Releases Jazz Trio Album

courtesy of Karl Latham

Those wondering whether or not the “classic jazz trio” (piano, bass, and drums) is still alive and well would do well to check out the album Together, which was released by Dropzone Records this past June. The album was produced by drummer Karl Latham, performing with pianist Alex Collins and Ryan Berg on bass. The overall duration is relatively modest (52 minutes); but that period of time discloses a generous account of inventiveness over the course of six standards: “Stella by Starlight” (Victor Young), “Alone Together” (Arthur Schwartz), “On Green Dolphin Street” (Bronisław Kaper), “Polka Dots and Moonbeams” (Jimmy Van Heusen), “Night Dreamer” (Wayne Shorter), and “Invitation” (Kaper).

The album itself seems to have been compiled from live-streamed performances, which originated at Firefly Studios in Warwick, located in Orange County, New York, just north of the border with New Jersey. The streamed events took place on November 13, 2020, December 4, 2020, and February 12, 2021. Latham served as recording engineer for these three sessions. Regular readers may know by now of my aversion towards what I have called “music that has responded to COVID-19 by blunting sharp edges, rather than seeking them for stimulation.” There is no shortage of keenly sharpened edges in the improvisations that unfold on Together, making this an album that lifts the spirits rather than bemoaning lockdown conditions.

I was particularly glad to encounter “Night Dreamer” “rubbing shoulders” with the more familiar standards on the album. As I wrote yesterday about the release of the “Lost Session” album of vocalist Sheila Jordan, I appreciate any encounter that reminds me of the many gaps in my knowledge of jazz. Where Shorter is concerned, there is still a major gap in my knowledge of his years of recording with Blue Note; and Night Dreamer was a significant album from that period. Sometimes I think that the best thing a jazz album can do is trigger interest in other jazz albums; and, in that context, I have been delighted to add Together to my growing collection.