The New Straight Ahead [CD]

The New Straight Ahead' is the debut Whirlwind Recordings release from the New York Standards Quartet and their fourth album to date. The NYSQ is made up of pianist David Berkman, drummer Gene Jackson, saxophonist Tim Armacost, and double bassist Daiki Yasukagawa. As a band the New York-based unit have developed a near telepathic relationship playing together in a variety of settings since their formation in 2006.

Conceptually, the NYSQ strives to develop its own language within the tradition of performing standard jazz repertoire. The Guardian, in a glowing, four-star review of the band's tour across the UK, asserts the NYSQ is "a group devoted to radical reinvention of famous pop songs and Broadway show tunes. Plenty of contemporary jazz artists do that, but few more divertingly than this vivacious foursome, who delightedly cherish the originals while brusquely deconstructing their harmonies and tweaking their melodies, sometimes only slipping in the original theme on the way out of the piece. This is a collective class act."

Personnel: Tim Armacost (tenor and soprano saxophones), David Berkman (piano), Daiki Yasukagawa (double bass), Gene Jackson (drums)