Ben Goldberg Sextet at Mr. Tipple’s

Those that have followed this site for some time probably know by now that I have made it a point to keep up with the albums released by clarinetist Ben Goldberg. For the most part Goldberg divides his time between New York and the Bay Area. Fortunately, where the latter is concerned, I had an opportunity last night to listen to him in performance at Mr. Tipple’s Jazz Club, where my wife and I had made reservations for the first set.

Kai Lyons, Raffi Garabedian, Ben Goldberg, Danny Lubin-Laden and Ben Davis on the stage at Mr. Tipple’s last night (photograph by Linda Dembo)

For this gig Goldberg led a sextet. He shared the front line with Raffi Garabedian on tenor saxophone and trombonist Danny Lubin-Laden. In the rhythm section Kai Lyons performed on electric guitar, and the drummer was Jordan Glenn. The remaining member was cellist Ben Davis, who divided his time between elaborate solo riffs and the sort of rhythm work one expects from a bass.

The program consisted entirely of Goldberg compositions, all of which I had not previously encountered on recordings. These included a couple of selections from a series called Porch Concert Material. Then, towards the end of the evening, there was one with a deliberately eccentric title: “You Can’t Write a Song Called ‘I Heard it Over the Radio’ Any More.”

Most interesting was how Goldberg managed the group as a whole. During the opening selection, “Unidentified Blues in B-flat,” Lyons launched into an elaborate solo. Lubin-Laden then superposed his on solo work on top of Lyons’ riffs. Then, as if the third time would be the charm, Garabedian added an extra layer to the counterpoint. The cumulative effect was jaw-dropping, and the “full chorus” was mind-blowing. Later in the evening, Lyons and Lubin-Laden were joined by Davis to provide a “continuo” for “Three Ingredients #6.”

I first became aware of Goldberg through an album entitled Junk Genius. This was basically a tribute album to the pioneers of the bebop movement, including Dizzy Gillespie, Charlie Parker, and Bud Powell. In that spirit, Goldberg’s  sextet wrapped up the set with a nod to the past in the thoroughly engaging account of Thelonious Monk’s “Let’s Cool One.”