John Alvey, Loft Glow
Since COVID lockdown, we’ve run a recurring print column called Another Look that rounds up several super-brief record reviews. It’s a way to highlight worthy releases from Nashville-residing musicians during the past few months that we haven’t yet covered in-depth. The time has come for an evolution: Rather than one whopping article, we’re revamping Another Look as a series of single short reviews, with one or more iterations online each week.
Drummer and composer John Alvey's Music City ties are extensive not only in jazz, but in country, rock, Americana and pop. As the son of jazz pianist, conductor and educator Michael Alvey, he was drawn to the drums rather than the keyboards as a 9-year-old. But despite spending many years playing and excelling doing other styles, Alvey found that jazz was always a primary love. That's the stylistic focus of his debut release, Loft Glow, an outstanding tribute to the late master bandleader, composer and saxophonist Benny Golson.
Alvey heads a distinguished crew of fellow Music City jazz headliners in trombonist Roland Barber, tenor saxophonist Joel Frahm, alto saxophonist Jovan Quallo, pianist Matt Endahl, and bassist Jacob Jezioro. The ensemble expertly navigates through a mixture of originals and spirited versions of numbers written by some of Alvey's musical heroes (Golson, bassist Ron Carter and saxophonist John Stubblefield). Their crackling version of Golson's "Terminal 1," featuring powerful solos from Endahl, Barber and Frahm, is a highlight among the covers, though the performances are no less inspired on Carter's "Blues for D.P." or Stubblefield's "Baby Man."
Still, it's the originals where you hear the most memorable statements, with Alvey at his best on "Azure," and Barber and Quallo each offering a solid composition with "Winslow Nocturne" and "June 23," respectively. While this is first and foremost hard bop and very much in the mainstream tradition, it's also energetically delivered, with the loose and frenetic interaction that makes great jazz so enjoyable. Loft Glow may be a first effort, but it has the instrumental flair and edge emblematic of all first-rate releases.
