With too many Rifftides posts lately about the deaths of prominent figures in jazz, it was good to hear from someone who documents the work of young musicians. The message came from Randy Cole in Montreal.
I’ve been making a number of short films, and I wanted to share one with you. Most of my films thus far feature two wonderful Montreal musicians, Al McLean on sax and Kevin Dean on trumpet.
Mr. Cole’s communique contained a link to one of those films. I was unfamiliar with him or the musicians in his feature. I am glad to know about them, as Rifftides readers may be. McLean’s and Dean’s rhythm section is bassist Morgan Moore and drummer Hans Verhoeven. Following a spoken word section and an impressive unaccompanied interlude by McLean, the quartet plays Dizzy Gillespie’s “Birk’s Works,” with comments interspersed.
Let’s hear it for Canada.
There are several other clips of Randy Cole’s film work on this You Tube page.