In October 2018 a group of esteemed US-based improvisers came together at Jazz Club Hannover, to play a programme of American Songbook ballads.
Trumpeter Ralph Alessi, saxophonist Ingrid Laubrock, pianist Jacob Sacks, bassist Drew Gress and drummer/leader Tom Rainey stretch out on standards like Stella By Starlight and Just in Time and show how the freest musicians can also bond with great show melodies and create improvising gems from them.
There is some superb ensemble musicianship playing on the cusp of very recognisable melodies and powerful solo virtuosity — hear Dress at the outset of What’s New or Laubrock’s lyricism on I Fall in Love Too Easily.
These five musicians turn tradition inside out while still keeping faith with its enduring melodic messages.
There is power and beauty in their soundscape, transforming Americana with both familiarity and sudden creative surprise, reaching a long way back and far forward simultaneously.

https://morningstaronline.co.uk/article/c/album-reviews-tony-burke-mik-sabiers-and-chris-searle

Das Quintett des US-amerikanischen Schlagzeugsubtilisten widmet sich - im avantgardeaffinen Jazz keineswegs selbstver- ständlich - ausnahms los Standards. Wie sich acht davon auf zeitgenössische Wei- se neu deuten lassen, ohne dabei in haltlo sen Dekonstruktivis mus zu verfallen, wird in diesem gut 50-mi nütigen und äußerst dichten Livemitschnitt von 2018 auf exem- plarische und ebenso kurzweilige wie wen- dungsreiche Weise vor- geführt. Die hellwache Interaktion aller Betei ligten ist schlicht be- glückend.

Jazz is not a competitive sport and "Best Ofs" are misnomers. End of the year listicles have no bearing on the artistic standing of the albums they include, or on those they neglect, just like a five star review doesn't make the album it graces any better than it already is.

But, apparently, humans like to rank, classify, compare and contrast, possibly as that allows them to make semi-informed choices in a disorienting world. With the number of great albums that keep being released, indeed, listicles may provide a few hints about music that is worth checking out in the midsts of the discographic deluge, or to make sure not to miss something that may have passed under one's radar.

At a personal level, end of the year listicles may also function as bread-crumbs that one can use years later to trace back her or his listening path. With that spirit in mind, below I include—in alphabetical order—albums that made my 2021 sonically delightful.

No claim that these are the best albums of the year, nor that they're better than those that are not included below. The list just reflects what resonated with me most, among the albums that I had the pleasure of listening to, during a year that was—once again—even more replete of superb releases than the year bfore. And since the list below cannot do justice to 2021's remarkable volume of beautiful albums, further below are more memorable titles, divided in various sub-categories.

If you have not listened to them yet... give them a spin. My guess is that you'll like them too!

https://www.allaboutjazz.com/ludovico-granvassu-2021-sonic-delights-pino-palladino

Tout finit par des standards ou Quand on a tout joué, il reste les standards (j'ajouterais le blues). Le Tom Rainey Obbligato nous offre donc son troisième disque de standards après un premier en 2013 et un second en
2017. Celui-ci, qui reprend six thèmes des précédents, a l'avantage de restituer la spontanéité et la dynamique d'un concert enregistré au Jazz Club d'Hanovre en 2018. Mis à part le pianiste Jacob Sacks qui remplace Kris Davis, l'équipe est la même : Drew Gress "assure" à la basse et les solistes se régalent, Ingrid Laubrock aux saxes et Ralph Alessi particulièrement en verve à la trompette, tandis que le chef nous offre
l'inévitable et spectaculaire (mais ô combien original) solo de batterie. Un régal! « Untucked in Hannover »
(CD 360).

Nouveauté. Ce dynamique quintette intergénérationnel a été fondé en 2013 par l'infaillible batteur polyvalent Tom Rainey avec sa compagne, l'intrépide saxophoniste allemande Ingrid Laubrock, le chaleureux trompettiste Ralph Alessi, la lumineuse pianiste canadienne Kris Davis et Drew Gress, l'irremplaçable contrebassiste. Ce troisième album a été enregistré en public au Jazz Club d'Hanovre, au cours d'une tournée européenne à laquelle ne participait pas Kris Davis, efficacement remplacée par l'élégant et subtil Jacob Sacks. Le répertoire de cet étonnant combo est constitué d'inusables standards tirés de l'American Songbook (Stella by Starlight, I Fall in Love Too Easily, Just in Time...) reconfigurés dans un réjouissant contexte free bop. Laubrock se coule langoureusement dans ces éternelles mélodies et dialogue avec la trompette brillante et émouvante d'Alessi. Ce remarquable duo de souffleurs se permet aussi quelques revigorants écarts de langage. Sacks est débordant d'un swing gracieux et pétillant. Gress et Rainey qui se connaissent depuis leur participation au trio de Fred Hersch assure avec vitalité un impressionnant drive très expressif. De très belles reprises pleines d'inventivité !

Neljazz dioggi la questione del repertorio è spinosa. Le vecchie canzoni sono ignorate (da chi vuole Inventare nuovi approcci alla musico) o suonate in modo manieristico (da chi pensa che il jazz sia ormai storicizzato) | bravo batterista Tom Rainey conosce una terza via suonare con il suo gruppo gli standard come se fossero brani contemporanel, avventurosl. Il pubblico del live Untucked in Hannover (Intakt) approva.

This quintet began with a simple if tricky premise: play common standards, improvising from the melodies and minding the forms and harmonies -- but doing it with the free fluidity of collective improvisers. The musicians may enter and exit at will, and they never play a formal melody chorus, though someone usually hints at the tune or maybe plays it outright, somewhere in the middle. If you ever hear a head-solos-head band and think, Why don't the horns improvise together?, this music is for you.

Drummer Tom Rainey put Obbligato together on noting how well tenor saxophonist Ingrid Laubrock and trumpeter Ralph Alessi entwine in spontaneous counterpoint. (They were all already in the improvising quartet LARK.) Sometimes one horn inches into the lead role, the other on its heels with the obbligatos -- the improvised commentary, like Louis Armstrong behind Bessie Smith. Rainey and bassist Drew Gress have teamed in umpteen inside and outside bands since the 1980s, and have a mutual feel for how to let things unravel and when to tighten up. Regular pianist Kris Davis is replaced on this 2018 live recording from Jazz Club Hannover by their younger colleague Jacob Sacks, who helps prove the band concept by fitting right in. On Obbligato's third (and first live) album they sound ever more confident, but (as often happens with long-running improvising groups) the spontaneous action is more regularized. Entrances and exits are less haphazard, more keyed to a song's turning points. There might even be a little more overt melody-playing. It's not like they're keeping the selections a secret -- though Alessi practices a bit of misdirection, quoting from "There Is No Greater Love" (in the band's book) on "In Your Own Sweet Way," and from "If I Should Lose You" (also in their repertoire) on "I Fall in Love Too Easily." One possible reason for greater regularity: They'd already recorded the eight tunes here. Which is not to say the fireworks or fluidity have faded. The way one player phrases a melodic fragment early on may dictate how another treats it minutes later.

"Stella by Starlight" starts out of tempo, trumpet and tenor slowly leapfrogging. Laubrock favors a warm middle range; Alessi, who makes wide leaps sound easy, darts above and below. (He has a formidable high range, an avant Harry James.) Here and there we get something like conventional solos: tenor and the rhythm section kick off "I Fall in Love Too Easily," Laubrock bringing the appropriate melancholy - nothing ironic here. (Then trumpet sneaks in, and then tenor exits, then piano sneaks up as trumpet recedes, tidal motion.) Laubrock also gets a lovely melody chorus on "What's New" (with a little trumpet heckling). It's a pleasure to hear these outcats negotiating the changes and playing pretty. As the anarchic Misha Mengelberg once said, jazz is the teacher in the 20th century: it shows musicians how to deal with certain problems, and thus is a useful part of any improviser's toolbox.

With music this multi-linear and densely interwoven, you need to hear everyone all the time to trace the elegant five-way counterpoint. That's just what you get, thanks to house engineer Raphael Becker-Foss, and North German Radio's Jans Kunze, who recorded it. The horns stay on mic, regulating their own dynamics, and everyone sounds true -- although in Drew Gress's case we hear the amplifier, not the bass. But that's club life.

https://www.theaudiobeat.com/music/tom_rainey_obbligato_cd.htm

This quintet began with a simple if tricky premise: play common standards, improvising from the melodies and minding the forms and harmonies -- but doing it with the free fluidity of collective improvisers. The musicians may enter and exit at will, and they never play a formal melody chorus, though someone usually hints at the tune or maybe plays it outright, somewhere in the middle. If you ever hear a head-solos-head band and think, Why don’t the horns improvise together?, this music is for you.

Drummer Tom Rainey put Obbligato together on noting how well tenor saxophonist Ingrid Laubrock and trumpeter Ralph Alessi entwine in spontaneous counterpoint. (They were all already in the improvising quartet LARK.) Sometimes one horn inches into the lead role, the other on its heels with the obbligatos -- the improvised commentary, like Louis Armstrong behind Bessie Smith. Rainey and bassist Drew Gress have teamed in umpteen inside and outside bands since the 1980s, and have a mutual feel for how to let things unravel and when to tighten up. Regular pianist Kris Davis is replaced on this 2018 live recording from Jazz Club Hannover by their younger colleague Jacob Sacks, who helps prove the band concept by fitting right in.

On Obbligato’s third (and first live) album they sound ever more confident, but (as often happens with long-running improvising groups) the spontaneous action is more regularized. Entrances and exits are less haphazard, more keyed to a song’s turning points. There might even be a little more overt melody-playing. It’s not like they’re keeping the selections a secret -- though Alessi practices a bit of misdirection, quoting from “There Is No Greater Love” (in the band’s book) on “In Your Own Sweet Way,” and from “If I Should Lose You” (also in their repertoire) on “I Fall in Love Too Easily.” One possible reason for greater regularity: They’d already recorded the eight tunes here. Which is not to say the fireworks or fluidity have faded. The way one player phrases a melodic fragment early on may dictate how another treats it minutes later.

“Stella by Starlight” starts out of tempo, trumpet and tenor slowly leapfrogging. Laubrock favors a warm middle range; Alessi, who makes wide leaps sound easy, darts above and below. (He has a formidable high range, an avant Harry James.) Here and there we get something like conventional solos: tenor and the rhythm section kick off “I Fall in Love Too Easily,” Laubrock bringing the appropriate melancholy -- nothing ironic here. (Then trumpet sneaks in, and then tenor exits, then piano sneaks up as trumpet recedes, tidal motion.) Laubrock also gets a lovely melody chorus on “What’s New” (with a little trumpet heckling). It’s a pleasure to hear these outcats negotiating the changes and playing pretty. As the anarchic Misha Mengelberg once said, jazz is the teacher in the 20th century: it shows musicians how to deal with certain problems, and thus is a useful part of any improviser’s toolbox.

With music this multi-linear and densely interwoven, you need to hear everyone all the time to trace the elegant five-way counterpoint. That’s just what you get, thanks to house engineer Raphael Becker-Foss, and North German Radio’s Jans Kunze, who recorded it. The horns stay on mic, regulating their own dynamics, and everyone sounds true -- although in Drew Gress’s case we hear the amplifier, not the bass. But that’s club life.

http://www.theaudiobeat.com/music/tom_rainey_obbligato_cd.htm

Rainey's acoustic quintet Obbligato's third album was taped at the back end of a European tour at Jazzclub Hannover. The drummer has made key collaborations with a close circle of musicians in New York since the late 1990s, most notably at first in saxophonist lim Bernes various projects; Obbligato is part of a nucleus of collaborators since 2010. Although Rainey and his peers naturally favour originality in terms of composition as well as improv, Obbligato is an exercise in jazz standard interpretation. Yet straightahead it certainly ain't; neither is it though a recording that strays far from the memorable melodies of evergreens - all of which have appeared on previous Obbligato recordings - as might similarly left field schools of jazz interpretation. Instead themes are often present as reconstructed fragments intriguingly wafting in and out of the material or as a whole with interweaving soloists. Ralph Rainger's 'If I Should Lose You' emphasises the intimate collective counterpoint at the heart of the album with saxophonist Ingrid Laubrock and pianist Jacob Sacks, who replaces regular pianist Kris Davis this time, at first sounding smokily reminiscent of the Marsh-Tristano ensemble. What's New also comes with the ensembles simpatico give-and-take before a giddily offbeat, freewheeling episode in which Sacks plays the theme as a background like a late night barroom pianist; Alessi and Laubrock's versions that follow are similarly poignantly old-fashioned. You can fall in love with these classic songs all over again listening to this quite exceptional recording.

Bereits das dritte Album mit Standards veröffentlicht Schlagzeuger Tom Rainey hier mit seinem Quintett Obbligato. Diesmal nähert man sich live einigen älteren Schlachtrössern, und es klingt so ganz anders, wenig konservativ und rück-wärtsgewandt, als man sich das vielleicht vorstellt. Das Quintett spielt völlig frei um die sechs Stücke und klingt manchmal wie ein Update dessen, was Lennie Tristano, Warne Marsh und Lee Konitz in den Sechzigern und Siebzigern auflegten. Es ist eine gemeinsam erimpro-visierte Rekomposition der alten Nummern, die in ihre Bestandteile zerlegt werden und völlig neu erstehen. Das mag man gelegentlich als etwas kuhl und intellektuell empfinden, aber die Fünf schaffen es doch immer wieder, mit wärmenden Grooves ein mitreißendes und urjazziges Gemeinschaftsgefühl hochleben zu lassen.

Beschouw je de traditie als een ideaal, eon afge-werkte vorm, dan beland je uiteindelijk in een doodlopend retrostraatje. Je kan ze ook zien als een springplank, een bak van suggesties, zoals drummer Tom Rainey dat met zijn Obbligato-kompanen doet. De stuk-ken op deze liveregistratie stonden ook al op de 2 vorige albums, maar dat is geen bezwaar, want dit ijzersterke kwintet, nu met pianist Jacob Sacks in plaats van Kris Davis, blaast een handvol kapotgespeelde composities nieuw leven in. Stella By Starlight, I Fall In Love Too Easily en If I Should Lose You: we hoorden ze allemaal al, maar zelden zo fris en open, benaderd met zo'n collectieve gretigheid en spontaniteit. Want dat is het meest opvallend: ondanks de sterke individuen staat het ensemble centraal. En het swingt nog ook. (GP)

Fünf Spitzenvertreter des Was-auch-immer-Jazz jammen sich live durch acht Ultrastandards des Great American Songbook. Was schon geschrieben nach sehr dünnem Eis klingt, bricht leider des öfteren ziemlich ein oder, noch schlimmer, schmilzt dahin. Keiner der fünf kann sein von unzähligen tollen Platten unter Beweis gestelltes Potenzial wirklich abrufen. Klar spielen sie gut zusammen, aber auch das nicht immer auf dem Niveau, wie man es kennt und irgendwie auch erwartet. In den Liner Notes steht, man soll die Augen schließen und sich vorstellen, man sitze in seinem Lieblingsjazzclub in der ersten Reihe, dann würde man eine Band das Great American Songbook spielen hören wie noch niemals davor. Wenn ich die Augen schließe, höre ich ein Jamsession, wie ich sie schon 100 Mal gehört habe. Was nichts Schlechtes ist, ich mag Jazz-Sessions, aber welche, in denen etwas auf Risiko gespielt wird und nicht so cool und abgezockt wie hier. Leider überhaupt keine Empfehlung. Noch nicht mal oder gerade nicht für Fans. (sim)

Some of the joys of early avant garde jazz came with the dismantling and repurposing of the Great American Songbook, whether the effect was satiric (Sonny Rollins' "Alexander's Ragtime Band"), rhapsodic (Eric Dolphy's "Tenderly") or cathartic (Bill Dixon and Archie Shepp's "Somewhere"). Drummer Tom Rainey's Obbligato takes a fresh approach to standard repertoire, substituting collective dialogues where the tyranny of solos with rhythm once prevailed, creating a music rich in invention as well as traditional grace and sentiment. Joining Rainey are trumpeter Ralph Alessi, saxophonist Ingrid Laubrock, pianist Jacob Sacks (substituting for band regular Kris Davis) and bassist Drew Gress, each a masterful student of the material as well as an adept collective and free improviser.

The songs played here appeared in studio versions on the group's two previous Intakt releases but the live atmosphere of Jazz Club Hannover adds further inspiration. The group has some of the abstraction of Lennie Tristano's classic early groups, though here the emphasis is more melodic than harmonic. With Gress and Rainey providing strong underpinnings, Alessi, Laubrock and Sacks can exchange fragments or craft continuous melody from brief gestures that tumble over one another. The opening "If I Should Lose You" swings readily on the propulsion of emphatic brushwork. The timbres (airy tenor and Harmon muted trumpet) present a period charm, but those historical associations give way as the contrapuntal emphasis takes over.

The medley of "What's New - There Is No Greater Love" presents shifting perspectives, beginning with Gress' improvised intro before Sacks plays a single-note rendition of the "What's New" melody under Alessi's improvisation, a minimalist approach to theme. Laubrock and Alessi stretch "Just in Time" from Rainey's bop-driven time to a dilating duet that morphs into Dave Brubeck's "In Your Own Sweet Way", highlighted by Sacks' brilliant economy. Laubrock creates a lyrical dreamscape on "I Fall in Love Too Basily". Obbligato is an arresting exercise in time travel, the music shifting directions to move further into its own identity.

On connaît surtout le batteur new-yorkais Tom Rainey comme un brillant sideman auprès de musiciens comme Tim Berne, Mark Helias, Fred Hersch ou encore Kenny Werner (je me souviens notamment d’un splendide concert donné par ce dernier avec Tom Rainey au festival Jazz à Liège, il y a une bonne vingtaine d’années). Il a attendu 2010, à plus de 50 ans, pour enregistrer son premier album en tant que leader : un trio (le bien nommé Tom Rainey Trio) avec la saxophoniste Ingrid Laubrock (par ailleurs son épouse) et la guitariste Mary Halvorson. Ce trio, plutôt free (c’est dans un registre plutôt avant-gardiste que Rainey a le plus souvent officié), a enregistré quatre albums très réussis. Parallèlement à ce trio, il a fondé un autre groupe, le Tom Rainey Obbligato, qui présente ici son 3ème album, un live, après « Obbligato » de 2014 et « Float Upstream » de 2017. Assez bizarrement (étant donné le « pedigree » de Rainey), ce groupe, ne propose que des standards et ce dans une configuration des plus classiques : un quintet (trompette, saxophone, piano, contrebasse, batterie). Lorsqu’on le questionne sur ce sujet, Tom Rainey rétorque que les standards du Great American Songbook font partie de l’histoire du jazz et qu’il en a très souvent joués avec Fred Hersch ou Kenny Werner. Donc des standards et dans une configuration classique… Mais connaissant notre bonhomme, on imagine que les interprétations de titres comme « Stella by Starlight » ou « I Fall in Love too Easily » n’ont rien de conventionnel. Et c’est bien cela l’intérêt de cet album enregistré dans un club à Hanovre en octobre 2018. Plutôt que de présenter ces classiques avec des musiciens prenant leur chorus à tour de rôle, ce projet mise sur un vrai travail de groupe où l’interaction est primordiale (les solos sont bien présents, mais ils sont le plus souvent intégrés dans le flux continu proposé). La relecture de ces classiques leur donne une nouvelle vie (il est vrai que, parfois, il est malaisé de reconnaître les thèmes) pleine de fraîcheur. Et que dire des interprètes : un quasi « all stars » qui, loin de tirer la couverture à soi, offre cette musique où la qualité d’écoute est essentielle. Outre Tom Rainey, on retrouve Ingrid Laubrock aux saxophones, Ralph Alessi à la trompette (splendides dialogues entre la trompette et le saxophone), Drew Gress à la contrebasse et Jacob Sacks au piano (lequel, ce soir là, remplaçait la pianiste habituelle, Kris Davis). Voici donc un bien bel album qui n’a qu’un seul petit défaut : il ne reprend que des titres apparaissant déjà sur les deux premiers albums studio et ce dans des versions assez similaires. Quand on connaît la richesse du Great American Songbook…

https://jazzmania.be/tom-rainey-obbligato-untucked-in-hannover/

Als we het over drummers hebben mag Tom Rainey natuurlijk niet ontbreken. Sinds zijn debuut in 1980 speelde hij mee op zo’n 250 jazzalbums van gerenommeerde musici als Kenny Werner, Fed Hersch, Mark Helias, Tim Berne, Tony Malaby en heel veel meer. Maar ook onder eigen naam is hij actief, met zijn trio, verder bestaand uit zijn levenspartner Ingrid Laubrock en gitariste Mary Halvorson en met Tom Rainey Obbligato, waarin we naast Laubrock, de trompettist Ralph Alessi vinden, de pianiste Kris Davis en de bassist Drew Gress. Van die laatste groep ligt er inmiddels een nieuw album bij Intakt Records, opgenomen tijdens een Europese toer in Hannover, vandaar ‘Untucked in Hannover’. Overigens met één belangrijke wijziging in de bezetting: Jacob Sacks vervangt Kris Davis.
Naar aanleiding van het vorige album ‘Float Upstream’ en een concert in het Tilburgse Paradox merkten we reeds op dat Obbligato het vehicle is waarmee Rainey standards te lijf gaat. En dan allesbehalve op traditionele wijze. Naar aanleiding van het concert in Paradox schreef ik: “Klassieke standards op zeer originele en onnavolgbare wijze gespeeld. Zeg maar gerust binnenstebuiten gekeerd! Je moet de nummers wel zeer goed kennen om de echo’s van de meer bekendere versies te kunnen herkennen”. Acht staan er op dit album, opgenomen tijdens dat concert in Hannover, te beginnen met Ralph Raingers ‘If I Should Lose You’. We horen direct Laubrock in een prachtige bijdrage op tenorsax, de melodie mooi losjes vormgegeven, terwijl Rainey en Gress voor het ritme tekenen. Verderop valt Alessi op, met een klank die vanuit de coulissen lijkt te komen. Meer aanwezig is hij in ‘Stella By Starlight’ van Victor Young, geflankeerd door Laubrock. Trompet en tenorsax, de klassieke combinatie, gezet op een bijzonder aantrekkelijk ritmisch patroon.
Dan volgen twee standards in één stuk ‘What’s New’ van Robert Sherwood Haggart en ‘There Is No Greater Love’ van Isham Jones. Gress trapt af met een zeer melodieuze solo, ons op prachtige wijze dit stuk in trekkend, dan volgen enkele noten van Sacks, het thema wordt neergezet en horen we Alessi, een boeiend duet ontvouwt zich, terwijl we op de achtergrond Rainey gewaarworden. En verderop in dit stuk, met bijna achttien minuten tevens het langste, zit een zeer boeiende solo van deze fantastische drummer, gevolgd door een aangenaam hectische passage, waarin we alle vijf de leden op grootse wijze horen schitteren. Een hoogtepunt op dit album is Julie Styne’s ‘I Fall In Love Too Easily’, klassieke bijdrages hier van zowel Laubrock als Alessi, wegdromen gegarandeerd. Dan volgt weer een combi van twee klassiekers, ‘Just in Time’ eveneens van Styne, in combinatie met het zeer bekende ‘In Your Own Sweet Way’ van David Brubeck. De eerste klinkt met een bijzonder enthousiasmerende, soms bijna circusachtige dynamiek, de tweede met onvervalste melancholie. Tot slot van dit voortreffelijke album klinkt nog Jerome Kerns onvergetelijke ‘Long Ago and Far Away’, beginnend met een perfect duet van Rainey en Gress, wat een gevoel voor ritme, wat een timing! De andere drie musici haken aan en als kwintet werken ze gezamelijk naar een glorieus einde.

https://www.nieuwenoten.nl/?p=12337

革新派ドラマーの名曲プロジェクト第3弾はクラブ・ライヴ
プロ歴40年のレイニーは過去10年でソロ・キャリアが急激に伸張。2014年アルバム・デビューのクインテッドオブリガード”は、スタンダード曲の演奏の定石を踏まえながらもソロ・リレーありきではなく、巧みな編曲とアンサンブル・ワーク、メンバーの即興的アイデアによって新鮮な音空間を現出。接着剤的パートを挿入したメドレー③⑤は、このユニットならではの発想と展開がきもの。スイスIntaktで実績を築くレイニーの快作。（杉田）

Tom Rainey Obbligato is drummer Rainey's jazz standards group. Untucked In Hannover is the first live album of a triptych. It follows Obbligato (2014) and Float Upstream (2017), both on Intakt Records. Great American Songbook tunes hammered and bent and stretched away from expectations into new shapes is the name of the game, an approach which runs parallel to that of Lee Konitz, especially the alto saxophonist's late career outings, including Live At the Blue Note (Half Note, 2012) and Standards Live: At the Village Vanguard (Enja, 2014).

With Rainey, a "standard approach" may seem outside of his wheelhouse; he is known for his work in the freer side of jazz, in collaboration with saxophonists Tim Berne and Tony Malaby, and Ingrid Laubrock, who is the saxophonist in Obbligato. And hearing him shift from the searing intensity of Berne's Big Satan group to a more melodious form of expression in his Obbligato is a tip of the hat to a respect for the tradition, even as he and his quintet grab that tradition by the lapels to give it a good shake.

Trumpeter Ralph Alessi and saxophonist Ingrid Laubrock are the front line—though nobody seems positioned "out front" here. The ever versatile Drew Gress (an inside/outside, whatever-the-situation-calls-for guy) plays bass, and Jacob Sacks sits in on piano, replacing Kris Davis, who played on the earlier Obbligato sets.

It is hard to imagine this music being rehearsed beyond a cursory effort. This is spontaneity, cubed. No extended solos, no grandstanding, but rather a loose and flexible group articulation that sometimes slips straight into the melody, but more often stretches it out of its familiar shape, sometimes beyond recognition. Rehearsal might tighten things up and take the gleam off the freshness.

And sometimes a song morphs: "What's New" evolves into "There Is No Greater Love;" "Just In Time" pivots to Dave Brubeck's "In Your Own Sweet Way." The quintet closes the show with a rollicking take of Jerome Kern's "Long Ago and Far Away," with Rainey pounding away like a rhythmic lunatic (with a method to his lunacy), laying down a rhumba-gone-wild groove inside the wailing horns. You cannot wrap up a show in a better fashion than that.

https://www.allaboutjazz.com/untucked-in-hannover-tom-rainey-obbligato-intakt-records