(Modern Creative, Post-Bop, Free Jazz, Nine Winds) Thomas Tedesco Ensemble - Don't Ever Be Afraid To Be Ascared (WEB) - 2000, FLAC (tracks), lossless

Guitarist Thomas Tedesco (not to be confused with fellow West Coast guitarist Tommy Tedesco) has assembled a top-notch band to play his original modern mainstream jazz. His guitar forms a melodic union on the majority of these tunes with trombonist Garnett Brown, a musician who has not been heard from much since the '70s. The combination proposes a unique sonority not normally heard. Pianist William Henderson, bassist Henry Franklin, and drummer William Jeffery are all skilled veterans who have been in the studio a lot, and they complement the compact, sparse, lean musings of the leader.
Tedesco wrote six of these eight compositions. They include the great, easy-swinging bopper "Can You Hear It?" which could easily be a Blue Note-Riverside catalog item, replete with a fine bass solo from The Skipper. An original, light, off-minor bossa "Doris Marie" has Henderson's deft piano stretching into creative harmonic territory. Afro-march beat and quirky lead melody by Brown's and Tedesco's guitar footprints cement "Quick to Hear You Speak," with Jeffery's solo coda. Then there's the twelve-minute-plus "Alchemy of Bobby Bradford," the most progressive, typical Nine Winds track of the program. The band starts loose and free, then merges into bluesy swing with improvised mezzo piano inserts in the middle section. "To Drink Water From a Wooden Bowl" is a sweet, slower type of blues ballad, while the title track is another laid-back 12-bar blues. The other two are the happy, mid- to uptempo Larry Young-penned swinger "Paris Eyes" with most attractive unison lines and Henderson's cool piano prevailing; and S. Rosen's "Limpop," a light, breezy, typically Californian, piano-led samba, with lead instruments churning deliciously. Tedesco's sound on this one in particular, with his pristine single-line voicings, rivals that of Joe Pass, Pat Martino or Joe Diorio.
The representation of teamwork is evident from start to finish on this granite-solid album covering over 70 minutes' worth of well-conceived and well-played contemporary music. It's a very fine effort, and different for the usually more stridently avant Nine Winds label. Highly recommended.

Thomas Tedesco: guitar, leader and composer of the music;
Garnett Brown: trombone;
William Henderson: piano;
Henry Franklin: bass;
William Jeffery: drums