Since branching off from his work as part of vocalist Tierney Sutton’s band, pianist Christian Jacob has formed a trio with fellow Angelenos Joe LaBarbera/dr and Darek Oles/b to delve into various “songbooks” of overlooked composers. For this album, he focuses on the pen of LA trumpeter Carl Saunders, reflecting a side of the horn man that is vastly underappreciated.
The songs are all strong on melody, and always with a marrow of swing with deft fingerplay by Jacob on “August In New York” and the hp “Admired”. LaBarbera digs in with Oles on “The Hipper They Are the Harder they Fall” while his brushes dance like Astaire on “Complex Simplicity”. There’s an attractive soul pulse to “Silver Ambience”, with the sticks getting kinetic on “Dark Blanket” and the team building up to a double time dash to the finish line on “A Pill For Bill”. Jacob closes out with a glorious solo on “Encore”, making you wonder why Saunders’ pen is not known as well as his sword.