KENNY WESSEL / MARC MOMMAAS / JAY ANDERSON – In the Briar Patch (Nonotes Records 0103; USA) Featuring Kenny Wessel on electric guitar, Marc Mommaas on tenor sax and Jay Anderson on double bass. For more than thirty years, I’ve heard jazz guitarist Kenny Wessel play with a number of fine bands: Ornette Coleman’s 2nd Prime Time, as well as several Adam Rudolph projects and the current version of the Nu Band. Mr. Wessel has started to release his own music over the past few years and on each disc, the personnel and approach are different. For this trio Mr. Wessel has picked two fine partners, Dutch saxist (currently living in NY) Marc Mommaas and bassist Jay Anderson. I’ve heard several of Mommaas’ discs on the Sunnyside label and each one is fine. Bassist Jay Anderson has also kept busy working with Red Rodney, Dave Liebman and Mark Soskin, amongst others.
This session was recorded in December of 2022 and the songs were written by Mr. Wessel or Mr. Mommaas. Kenny Wessel’s “Bird Bath” is first and it sounds like a cool school laid back bopper, both warm and cerebral sounding. Both Wessel’s guitar and Mommaas’ tenor have a lush, dreamy sound on “Your Song Toujours” and both the tenor and guitar takes lovely solos. “Hopping Pickle” (by Mommaas) has an older sound and a most familiar melody, a rather jubilant vibe persists throughout. All of the songs here have that older somewhat more mainstream sound, yet they are still adventurous in more subtle ways. This trio often reminds me of the Jimmy Giuffre Trio with Jim Hall on guitar and a bassist (from the late fifties). Wessel’s song, “Lines in the Sand”, has the sax and guitar shadowing each other while the bass holds things down. The tenor sax & guitar start to play their lines in tight, quick orbits before they slow down to a quiet conclusion. One of the things which makes this music so magical is the way whenever Mommaas solos on tenor, Wessel plays a series of lush chords underneath, creating a dreamy vibe overall. I love the way the title track swings effortlessly in a most relaxed way, with the sax and guitar softly exchanging lines and completing each other’s sentences. In my earlier jazz-loving days, I might’ve thought that this music was too mellow for me but I find now that there is something enchanting about this music, it is still rich in nuance, tone and with inventive solos that do not rely on fireworks. A kiss or hug is better than a wack upside your head. – Bruce Lee Gallanter, DMG
CD $10