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Conrad Herwig, Osteology (60:51); Criss Cross 1176
Criss Cross Jazz
Postbox 1214
7500 BE Enschede, Holland
Phone/fax: (31) 53 - 433 03 38
E-mail: info@crisscrossjazz.com
Cyberhome: www.crisscrossjazz.com


        A jazz guitarist with a penchant for provocation once called the 
guitar "the lamest jazz instrumentŠ besides the trombone." The big 
horn, with its awkard slide and low, nasal sound, is certainly a jazz 
underdog. Its important role in big bands is indisputable, but it is 
generally not thought of as a frontman instrument. In other words, 
there's never been a Charlie Parker or John Coltrane of the trombone. 
Thanks to the unwieldy mechanics of the instrument, trombonists 
typically haven't been able to negotiate chord changes and fast 
tempos as fluidly as a sax or trumpet or piano player can. As a 
result, the trombone has not achieved the kind of iconic status in 
jazz that we associate with, say, the tenor saxophone.
	But Conrad Herwig threatens to demolish all that. His 
technical facility is astounding. On his second Criss Cross release, 
Osteology, he recruits fellow trombonist Steve Davis of Chick 
Corea & Origin fame to complete his frontline. He didn't name the 
record "osteology" - the study of bones - for nothing. The session 
comes across as a kind of trombone manifesto. If you're thinking that 
two trombones up front might sound clunky and colorless, think again. 
This record is burning; it sounds more like a live show than a studio 
date. David Kikoski is on piano, James Genus is the bassist, and Jeff 
"Tain" Watts is behind the kit.
	It's remarkably easy to tell Herwig and Davis apart. Herwig 
is the more flamboyant of the two, tending toward the higher register 
and brandishing a brighter tone. Davis, favoring lower and fewer 
notes and a mellower tone, usually solos after Herwig. The disc opens 
with a seldom-played Coltrane number, "Syeeda's Song Flute." Other 
non-originals include Joe Henderson's Caribbean-style "Fire"; a 
clever and unusually brisk 6/8 reading of "It Ain't Necessarily So"; 
the oft-played but wonderful ballad "You Don't Know What Love Is"; 
and a blindingly fast "Devil May Care," on which Kikoski solos with 
only his right hand, in the manner of Herbie Hancock on Miles 
Smiles.
	Three Herwig originals complete the program. A contemplative 
latin groove grounds "Kenny K.", a moving tribute to the late Kenny 
Kirkland. Fittingly, piano is front and center, with Kikoski soloing 
first. "First Born," which gets my vote for best track, is a medium 
blues that recalls Wayne Shorter and McCoy Tyner on Blue Note. Genus 
and Tain lock in and swing furiously. And "Osteology" closes the 
record with a fleet dual-trombone line over a breakneck swing tempo; 
Herwig and Kikoski solo at the peak of their respective powers.
	There's nothing too out of the ordinary here in terms of 
material; it's as straightforward a hardbop/postbop menu as can be 
imagined. But the performances are outstanding and the energy is 
consistently high. The two trombonists surpass, to a startling 
degree, the supposed limitations of their instrument, supported by 
one of the most explosive rhythm sections I've heard on record in a 
while. Interestingly, Kikoski and Tain did not gel as well on 
Kikoski's own Criss Cross effort The Maze. This time the 
ferocity just doesn't let up.
~David R. Adler, 1/13/00

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