At the age of 70, veteran tenor saxophonist David "Fathead" Newman is in prime form throughout this well-rounded set. He jams bebop on Charlie Parker's "Visa," shows off his large tone on the ballads "Time After Time" and "When I Fall in Love," romps on the boogaloo "Shakabu," pays tribute to his former boss Herbie Mann on "Passing Through," and plays flute quite expertly on "Song for the New Man." Also quite worthy are a pair of Newman's newer songs, "Fast Lane" and "Lonesome Head." Trombonist Curtis Fuller is in excellent ...
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At the age of 70, veteran tenor saxophonist David "Fathead" Newman is in prime form throughout this well-rounded set. He jams bebop on Charlie Parker's "Visa," shows off his large tone on the ballads "Time After Time" and "When I Fall in Love," romps on the boogaloo "Shakabu," pays tribute to his former boss Herbie Mann on "Passing Through," and plays flute quite expertly on "Song for the New Man." Also quite worthy are a pair of Newman's newer songs, "Fast Lane" and "Lonesome Head." Trombonist Curtis Fuller is in excellent form during his six appearances and pianist John Hicks leads a particularly supportive rhythm section. Highly recommended to straight-ahead jazz fans, this set shows that David "Fathead" Newman, who has had a diverse career, is at heart a big-toned swinger in the tradition of Gene Ammons. ~ Scott Yanow, Rovi
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