Time: 50:15
Size: 115.1 MB
Styles: Pop/rock/jazz
Year: 2005
Art: Front
[5:47] 1. Billy’s Bounce
[1:14] 2. Worm
[5:40] 3. Tequila
[6:17] 4. 9h5
[7:29] 5. Journey’s End
[7:14] 6. The Joneses
[5:09] 7. Minor Mishap
[5:27] 8. I Can’t Get Started
[5:55] 9. Summertime
Drummer Ray Marchica had a simple goal for the pianoless quartet date In the Ring. Marchica simply wanted to go in the studio as a leader and record some of his favorite songs (both standards and originals) with a few of his favorite players. The results range from straight-ahead to mildly funky. Tenor saxophonist Teodross Avery emerges as the most impressive soloist, but guitarist Rodney Jones and bassist Lonnie Plaxico make strong contributions too. While Marchica takes a fair amount of solo space, he does not dominate the music. Among the many highlights are “Billie’s Bounce,” the up-tempo blues “9H5,” Rodney Jones’ hard bop original “Minor Mishap,” and a surprisingly fast version of “Summertime.” Marchica more than achieves his goal, putting together a well-paced and highly enjoyable set of first-class jazz. ~ Scott Yanow
In The Ring