On this third volume of Once More from the Beginning! by the Red Beans ‘n’ Rice Jazz Band, only three members play on all 29 tracks: John Riches on clarinet, Robin Burgess on sousaphone, and Jeff Rous on either trombone or cornet. One other, Vic Bevan, appears on cornet on all tracks except 1-8 on the second CD, Jeff Rous replacing him in what is a quintet that lacks a trombone. The tracks on these two discs come from performances in 1995, 1996, 1997, 2002, and 2003, the majority of them at the Swan Hotel in Loddon. Being unacquainted with Loddon, I “Googled” it and found that it is “a small town and civil parish in Norfolk, England, about 12 miles south-east of Norwich. The town lies on the River Chet, a tributary of the River Yare within The Broads.”
As with the previous two volumes, the tune lists on the two discs here comprise both the familiar and the less familiar. The former are kept interesting by their treatment by the band, and among the latter are some we don’t hear too often, including “Mama Inez,” “East Coast Trot,” “On Treasure Island,” and “You Can’t Get That Stuff No More.” The vocal on this last number, a comedy piece in the vein of “Shake That Thing” and “Tight Like That,” consists of a male and female harmonic fun duet.
The collective improvisation by the ensemble is the controlling principle throughout, and on several track
