Compositions & Classics

Tonight I saw Al Naylor and a rhythm section he brought together play an hour set here in town.  It made me realize why they think more live jazz needs to be played in Cedar Rapids.

Combo: 

John Shultz - Piano

Dave Tiede - Drums

Gary Palmer - Bass

The setlist was comprised of jazz standards and Al Naylor compositions, with a tasty mix of bluesy and upbeat tunes:

Blue Boppin' at the Saint

Take The "A" Train

Teach Me Tonight

Little Proxy

Summertime

Politely

Blue Monk

The band was tight all through the night, if you'll pardon the rhyme.  The piano player and drummer both found ways to use a lot of notes in a very musical manner.  The combo did a fantastic job of interacting with the soloist-whoever he may have been.  The flow of the gig showed not only preparation but decades and decades under each players' belt (save the dummer, who looked to be in his 20s).  Everybody's playing was amazing.  The drummer was changing it up and adding bits and pieces here and there.  The bassist's style was very fluent and he used the upper range of the instrument with no intonation issues.  The piano player had some serious chops and completed the ensemble.  Al made sounds come out of his horn that I didn't think trumpets could make.  New horn in hand, his phrases were very clean, be it fast or slow.  There were some solos that were absolutely sublime and its a real shame that these guys struggle to make a living in a day where the shittiest of musicians can make millions in a night.