The combination of tenor-saxophonist Harry Allen, pianist Romano Sportiello, and drummer Bryan Carter (who takes an occasional vocal) is certainly a hit throughout their new It Takes 3 CD. Allen, who has long since joined Scott Hamilton at the top of the last few decades’ swing tenors, and Sportiello (a master at swing and stride) can always be relied upon to provide rewarding music. The lesser-known but talented Carter provides background fireworks and colorful interaction with the two lead voices.
Whether it is “Runnin’ Wild,” “Exactly Like You,” “It’s You Or No One,” or the swing era hit “It Seems I Heard That Song Before,” the trio creates plenty of swinging excitement. In addition, Sportiello (“It’s Sunny In Cape Cod”) and Allen (“Each And Every Yesterday”) contribute an original apiece and the trio jams happily on Arnett Cobb’s “Kathy’s Blues.”
This recording is as enjoyable as one would expect which means that anyone interested in spirited mainstream jazz simply has to get a copy.
It Takes 3
Harry Allen, Romano Sportiello, and Bryan Carter
Night Is Alive 0014
www.nightisalive.com
Since 1975 Scott Yanow has been a regular reviewer of albums in many jazz styles. He has written for many jazz and arts magazines, including JazzTimes, Jazziz, Down Beat, Cadence, CODA, and the Los Angeles Jazz Scene, and was the jazz editor for Record Review. He has written an in-depth biography on Dizzy Gillespie for AllMusic.com. He has authored 11 books on jazz, over 900 liner notes for CDs and over 20,000 reviews of jazz recordings.
Yanow was a contributor to and co-editor of the third edition of the All Music Guide to Jazz. He continues to write for Downbeat, Jazziz, the Los Angeles Jazz Scene, the Jazz Rag, the New York City Jazz Record and other publications.
