Big Geez
BLOGCRITICS MAGAZINE

The title says it all.

Expectation , a brand new release from the Los Angeles Jazz Ensemble on the Kind Of Blue label, creates a couple of expectations of its own. First, the name of the group would suggest a claim as LA's official - or at least semi-official - jazz group, but I doubt that was their intent. However, the real expectation being created here is whether a modern group can do justice to a collection of treasured jazz classics, tunes written by everyone from Irving Berlin to Miles Davis, and originally performed by everyone from Davis to Thelonious Monk.

The short answer is that all expectations are fulfilled, and then some. This is a talented group of pros and their abilities are showcased in a way that any jazz lover will appreciate. The set even includes a second disc - a DVD showing studio sessions - which gives a look at the creation of some of the music while at the same time allowing the musicians to show their personalities.

The quintet's leader, bassist Darek "Ole" Oleszkiewicz, has assembled a veteran group that includes Bob Sheppard on sax, guitarist Larry Koonse, Alan Pasqua on organ, and drummer Peter Erskine. There are no fill-in sidemen here — these guys are all respected solo artists, coming together for something special.

In addition, vocalist Janis Siegel (normally part of Manhattan Transfer) joins in on several cuts, taking front and center at times, as with Irving Berlin's "I Got Lost In His Arms", but with her sultry tones blended into the instrumentation on others, such as the title tune.

With this much talent in the group you could almost envision some fighting for solos, but that's not the case. Everyone get plenty of opportunities to shine, whether it's Ole's soulful strumming framing Siegel's vocal on "I Didn't Know What Time It Was", or Sheppard making his soprano sax sing on Miles Davis' "All Blues". Sheppard also turns in some good licks on Kurt Weill's “This is New”.

Not to be forgotten is Pasqua's organ play, solidly supportive on many tunes and spotlighted on others, as was Erskine's drumming and Koonse's guitar. For example, on "Along Came Betty", a Benny Golson song, his inventive guitar work was outstanding.

Chris May
All About Jazz

The young Swiss label Kind Of Blue, after a patchy start which included some pretty cheesy projects, is beginning to hit a more formidable stride. Two 2007 releases, pianist Mark Soskin's One Hopeful Day, a fine band album made luminous by saxophonist Chris Potter, and vibraphonist Bobby Hutcherson's For Sentimental Reasons, all silk sheets and flickering candles, are likely to crop up in the best-of lists at the end of the year.

So, too, should the Los Angeles Jazz Ensemble's Expectation. Like the previous two albums, this one sits in an amiable corner of the modern-mainstream tradition but, also like the previous discs, its creators bring degrees of invention and quirky twists to the music which lift it skywards. It's a beautifully conceived set of standards and jazz classics, creatively yet respectfully arranged, and performed by outstanding, empathetic musicians, each of them a memorable soloist.

Bassist Darek Oleszkiewicz, the Ensemble's leader and arranger, has worked in some A-list bands over the past decade—with pianists Alice Coltrane and Brad Mehldau and saxophonists Charles Lloyd and Joe Lovano, among others—and for Expectation he cherry-picked a line-up from empathetic sidemen met along the way. The ever propulsive, cliché-free drummer Peter Erskine (like all the musicians, beautifully recorded, every piece of his kit shimmering in the light). The funky, harmonically sophisticated organist Alan Pasqua. Saxophonist Bob Sheppard (on five tracks), nimble on the soprano, a quiet fire on tenor. And vocalist Janis Siegel of Manhattan Transfer (on four tracks), mistress of elegance and cool.

At the heart of the music, alongside the awesome Erskine, is guitarist Larry Koonse. Foursquare in the Charlie Christian/Wes Montgomery tradition, Koonse is a technically adept and ravishingly melodic player, his improvisations full of long, lyrical, flowing lines. The band swings righteously from start to finish, Erskine and Oleszkiewicz setting the pace, Pasqua prompting and prodding, Koonse dancing like a genie in front. It's just gorgeous, and full of surprises and unexpected twists and diversions.

In writing the arrangements—which are sunny, spacious and imaginatively voiced—Oleszkiewicz avoids major recalibrations, preferring to retain the original top-lines and changes with just a tweak here and there. The tweaks include putting Benny Golson's “Along Came Betty” in 5/4 time—encouraging some drum breaks from Erksine as arresting as those played by drummer Joe Morello on the Dave Brubeck Quartet's “Take Five”—and setting Irving Berlin's “I Got Lost In His Arms” over an Antonio Jobim-esque bossa-nova guitar chart.

In the sleeve notes, Oleszkiewicz writes that playing with this group feels like driving a luxurious, vintage Cadillac, with all its comfort, power and flamboyance. Listening to it feels like that too. Remember to keep the sunroof down.

Glenn Astarita
ejazz news - USA

This lineup features some of the top West Coast session aces and solo artists in the business. With a companion DVD of the session, the music snugly fits within the modern-mainstream mode, enhanced by a radiant glean that emanates from the superb audio engineering. Many of these works are designed upon airy swing vamps, where the soloists make use of space and occasionally break out into heated forays.


Hammond B-3 organist Alan Pasqua is perhaps more noted as an acoustic pianist, other than his decades-old affiliation with drummer Tony Williams Lifetime jazz-fusion unit. Nonetheless, he sustains a perky organ-combo element during a hefty portion of these pieces as vocalist Janis Siegel adds a touch of elegance on select tracks.

On Miles Davis and Bill Evans' classic “Blue in Green,” guitarist Larry Koonse lays out a moody stylization of the primary theme, underscored by Pasqua's breezy keys and the rhythm section's delicate samba groove. The band turns Kurt Weill's “This is New,” into a peppery swing vamp, featuring Bob Sheppard's gutsy sax choruses and Darek Oles' fluent, walking bass lines. Then on Tadd Dameron's “Whatever Possessed Me,” Siegel's soul-stirring and wistful vocals are enveloped by Koonse's gentle phrasings. Overall, it's a sharp production that warrants repeated listens – all augmented by the respective musicians' infusion of class and eloquence. – Glenn Astarita

Darek “Oles” Oleszkiewicz: bass; Janis Siegel: vocals; Alan Pasqua: B3 Hammond organ; Bob Sheppard: saxophone; Larry Koonse: guitar; Peter Erskine: drums