# CD review: John Bailey feat. George Cables, Victor Lewis & Scott Colley – Time Bandits 2023: Video, CD cover

- Link: https://jazzblues.eu/2023/01/29/cd-review-john-bailey-feat-george-cables-victor-lewis-scott-colley-time-bandits-2023-video-cd-cover/
- Published: 2023-01-29T00:04:59+01:00
- Author: https://JazzBlues.EU

**New York trumpeter John Bailey’s third outing fronting a quartet is such a stellar
outing in every way, I might run out of superlatives in this review. _Time Bandits_
sees Bailey ranging over a wide range of jazz styles from numerous eras, from early
bop to modern post-bop jazz, with sashays along the way into Latin, New Orleans 
second line, and more. **

He’s assembled yet another superb quartet for this set including master pianist 
George Cables, in-demand bassist Scott Colley and drummer Victor Lewis, who has 
sat behind the kit on Bailey’s previous albums I_n Real Time_ (2018), and _Can You
Imagine?_ (2020).

In a career spanning nearly 40 years, Bailey has worked with some of the most revered
names in jazz. He grew up listening to both bebop and classic rock, was mentored
by the great Chicago trumpeter and multi-instrumentalist Ira Sullivan, played with
legendary drummer Buddy Rich before leaving college, and served long stints with
Ray Charles, Ray Barretto, Frank Sinatra, Jr., and Latin jazz innovator Arturo O’Farrill,
among others.

Bailey plays with clarity, sharpness and precision, but he also soulfully rides 
the deep grooves laid down by this rhythm section. That’s evident from the very 
beginning with the title track, which swings with second line energy and showcases
all four players’ strengths.

“Time Bandits” is a Bailey tune, as are several others – the playful uptempo blues
shuffle of “Various Nefarious” and the uplifting ballad “Ode to Thaddeus,” a tribute
to Thad Jones, and the free-playing, avant garde “Rose,” built on Shoenbergian 12-
tone rows (and yes, the pun is intended). Cables shows off some impressive classical
style playing on “Rose,” Lewis lays down a righteous solo, and Colley rumbles some
deep arco moves.

The program has some choice covers, too. Cables’ solo on Jerome Kern’s “Long Ago
And Far Away” is a thing of such beauty – crisp, swinging, and cleverly inventive;
and Colley’s solo that immediately follows is a textbook example of how piano, bass
and drums can stay locked into their groove even as one of them steps out for a 
solo turn.

Bailey’s playing is wonderfully evocative on Garry Dial’s sunny straightahead blues“
How Do You Know?” which amounts to a tribute to his mentor Ira Sullivan, who died
in 2020. Bailey blows a warm, breathy flugelhorn on Cables’ “Lullaby” in an intimate
and lyrical duet. Lewis drums with his hands and Bailey double-tracks a duet with
himself on a melancholy reading of the poignant Lennon-McCartney gem “She’s Leaving
Home.” I absolutely adore the deep swing of Lewis’s “Oh Man, Please Get Me Out of
Here!,” on which Bailey nods to several classic trumpet players including Dizzy 
Gillespie, Freddie Hubbard, and more.

It’s both a dip into the pockets of jazz history and a sly recognition of jazz music’s
relationship with time – thus the album’s title. “If you think about music in terms
of Western and Non- Western heritages, jazz is actually both,” Bailey says. “Jazz
can be defined as syncopated African rhythm with Western European harmony. Though
above all, the rhythmic feel is what defines the music as jazz.” _Time Bandits_ 
brims with both: rhythmic feel and heart-warming harmony.

![Time Bandits - song and lyrics by John Bailey, George Cables, Victor Lewis, Scott
Colley | Spotify](https://i.scdn.co/image/ab67616d0000b27358646404f101efdaaf53aabc)

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