Chip Shelton Live: Cape May Jazz Festival Stop 2

Multi-reed player Chip Shelton is in top form throughout this concert recording, producing two entire discs from one single evening. Well accompanied by organist Doug Carn, guitarist Lou Volpe, and drummer Sipho Kunene, Shelton starts the gig with “Imprints,” a deliberately obvious reworking of Wayne Shorter’s “Footprints” that takes on a life of its own with the leader’s strong soprano sax. The percolating take of “St. Thomas” finds him switching to piccolo and featuring Carn and Volpe extensively. Shelton plays flute in a funky medley of “All Blues” and “Well, You Needn’t.” The second disc takes on a breezier vibe, starting with Volpe’s “Astral Island.” With the leader back on flute, “On Green Dolphin Street” is recast with a reggae rhythm, avoiding the typical settings of this warhorse and giving the piece a new lease on life. Shelton’s lyrical flute in “Body and Soul” is an obvious highlight, while the humorous, extended workout of “Comin’ Home Baby” leaves his audience wanting more, the way it should be. Highly recommended. – Ken Dryden