Ben Wolfe Quintet
Live At Smalls
Smalls Live Records
www.Benwolfe.com
By George W. Harris

Bassist Ben Wolfe put out an incredibly clever disc a couple years ago, No Strangers Here (Max Jazz). This one, a live gig, shows he’s still got lots of great ideas and the heart of a Jazz Messenger. The music , taken from a set of gigs from May of 2010, have him with the cohesive team of Marcus Strickland/ts, Ryan Kisor/tp, Luis Perdomo/p ;and Gregory Hutchinson/dr. Steady and heady bop is at the top of the menu on tunes like “Block 11” and “Telescope,” both which feature some wonderful front line work by the horns. Some nice piano and bass interplay are spotlighted on “Double Czech” which leads into a nice solo for Wolfe, while some Monkish delights are delivered on “Unjust.” Perdomo displays gentle fingers on “I’ll Know You More” while the whole team struts its stuff on the jaunty “For The Great Sonny Clark.” Meat and potatoes on a blue plate special from The Pantry are delivered piping hot here!