SFJAZZ Collective at Dakota Jazz Club on 3/25/07

By: Joe Lang

SFJAZZ Collective - Publicity Photo

It is a beautiful rarity when you can feel tension in the air before a band takes a stage.  The greatest shows I’ve seen in my life all had that tension in the room before the band went on.  Sunday night at the Dakota, I could feel it.  I wasn’t even sure what to expect out of the hit; I’d never heard the Collective, despite hearing many of the members individually.  Eventually Lowell Pickett, the owner, took the stage, and announced that the show was not only the last show on the tour (always a great sign), but the last show to feature Joshua Redman, the artistic director and tenor man in the band.  Last chance.  Time to throw down. 

So one by one, Pickett introduced the band: Eric Harland on drums, vibe legend Bobby Hutcherson, Renee Rosnes on piano, Matt Penman on bass, Andre Hayward on trombone, Miguel Zenon on alto, Dave Douglas on trumpet and Redman on tenor.  They put me right at table 150, close enough to reach out and touch any member of the brass front line.  There was definitely some tension; Redman’s eyes darted all over the club, Douglas kept looking at Redman, and Hayward seemed to be looking left at all the other members to see if everything was alright.  Only Zenon was looking around with a bit of indifference, but still seemed a little stiff. 

Unbeknownst to me, according to their bio:

In addition to its outstanding line-up, the SFJAZZ Collective has been praised for its innovative approach to repertoire. Each year, the ensemble performs an entirely new list of works, consisting of compositions by a modern jazz master (in new octet arrangements by Grammy-winner Gil Goldstein) and one new piece by each of the eight Collective members (commissioned by SFJAZZ). Through this pioneering approach, simultaneously honoring jazz’s recent history while championing the music’s up-to-the-minute directions, the Collective embodies SFJAZZ’s organizational commitment to jazz as a living, ever-changing, and ever-relevant art form.

This night was to feature Thelonious Monk, and Hutcherson, Harland, Penman and Rosnes started a swinging groove on “Hornin’ In.”  Hutcherson’s vibes added the cool texture that absolutely made the piece.  Zenon joked to Redman about something as the two started laughing, alleviating some tension, and the front line took the head before Bobby’s solo.  The band then jumped into an almost unrecognizable version of “Epistrophy,” with Zenon soloing and Harland’s furious attack absolutely killing.  Afterwards, the band took it down to ballad town and Douglas, Rosnes and Hayward traded softer solos on “Reflections.”  Finally, artist director Redman stepped up on his arrangement of Monk’s “Bye-Ya.”  Redman bent at the knees, rotating back and forth with sweat swelled up on his dome, and blew out furious line after line in his aggressive solo. 

And then things got more interesting.  Moving into original land, the band kicked off “Chris Cross,” again featuring Hutcherson, but with more emphasis on the front line, as they harmonized the head with unison lines.  Then came Rosnes’s “Lions Gate,” a spotlight for the composer and Hayward.  Over the repeated melody and Harland’s snare cracks, Hayward blew a beautifully syncopated smoldering solo, more based on sensical lines and dramatic contrast than flash, maybe the strongest solo of the night. Not to be outdone, Rosnes answered with a well-built solo that had her aggressively hammering out chordal textures a la McCoy Tyner.  “Haast Pass,” a new piece, featured Zenon extensively.  In contrast to Hayward’s soloing on "Chris Cross," while impressive and rhythmically well built, his lines were difficult to latch onto, and while other band members nodded their head or smiled with approval, I had a difficult time getting into it. 

Then came the climax. The band kicked into Eric Harland’s “Union,” a melodic twisting rhythmic rollick, and all of a sudden the entire band dropped out, leaving Redman and Zenon alone, soloing, harmonizing, part composed, part improvised.  Easily the highlight of the night, Redman or Zenon would set up a line and the other would dance and wrap around it before setting up his line, and the other would do the same.  And without the entire band to compete with they didn’t have to blow as hard, and their tones were perfect.  After Penman’s solo, Harland jumped back in, the front line moved to stage left and again, and Harland crushed it.  With Penman hanging on, Harland’s explosive rapid fire snare hits, kicks, and double cymbal control (he used two sticks in his left hand), Harland showed why he is unquestionably the band’s secret weapon. 

Strangely, the crowd applauded for around five minutes, with shouts of encore and screams all around, and the band didn’t take an encore.  Was it that they didn’t want to spoil the perfection of the set?  Were they just tired?  I’ll never know. 

When the group comes through again with Joe Lovano, I’m sure I’ll check them out again, but without Redman, it ain’t gonna be the same.  For those in the audience on Sunday, they were treated to perhaps the last show of one of the finest neo-traditionalists bands around.  I’m glad I made it out. 

Location Info: Dakota Jazz Club
Artist Info: SFJAZZ Collective

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